Trust, Hope & Love
by pahlee
Summary: AU. Join two childhood friends face their greatest challenge: their friendship. Watch them rebuild trust and gain hope for their future as love as their guide to heal the broken. COMPLETE.
1. Story 1: Start of it All

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love  
>by pahlee<p>

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 1: Start of it All

"Come on! Let's get to that branch, we can see the river from up there!" said the pigtailed boy. Ranma Saotome, age 8, crouched down and then sprinted up to grab hold of the branch and swung onto the extended limb. He smiled down at the ground where his short haired companion stood, staring in awe at his feat.

Akane Tendo, age 8, scrunched up her face and tried to determine if she could, by chance, mimic her friends' actions and get up in the tree. She started to squat and tried to leap up, but her fingers had barely brushed the low-hanging branch as she landed back on the ground. Her lips formed a pout as she crossed her arms, "Eeh, Ranma-kun, it's too high."

Ranma gave a cheeky grin as he jumped down, grabbed hold of the branch and held out his hand, "Okay, Akane-chan, just this one time." Akane stared at the offered hand and tentatively put her smaller hand in his. He took a good hold and hoisted her up to the branch where she pulled herself the rest of the way up. Ranma then swung back to the limb with an outstretched one arm while the other one held the tree, "Grab on, and I'll help ya over here."

She hesitated for a moment as she took a quick look downward and saw how high they were and began to break into a cold sweat. "I dunno, Ranma-kun... I-I'm scared," Akane confessed, lowering her head in embarrassment. She had expected her friend to laugh at her, but to her surprise Ranma had just reached out harder, "Come on, I promise you're gonna like this view, I won't let you fall!"

Akane looked up and smiled instantly as she saw her friend's enthusiasm and finally reached out and grabbed his arm. Ranma pulled her over as Akane pushed herself off and climbed over to where Ranma was. They fell on top of each other with a light thump and laughter erupted from the kids. Akane got off of Ranma and sat down, her legs swinging over the side as she stared at the river. Ranma followed suit and swung his legs erratically over the side as he said, "Toldja we could see the river from here, ain't it pretty?" All Akane could do was nod her head as she watched the top of the water glitter as the sun began to set.

"You're right! It is!" Akane said, turning her head to face Ranma with a big grin, "Thank you for showing me!"

Ranma nodded his head cheerfully, "Of course, I wanted to show my best friend!"

The two smiled at each other and then directed their attention back to the river. A tranquil silence formed between them as the time passed slowly.

"Hey, Akane-chan?" Ranma whispered as the orange haze spread across the waters and dusk began.

"Hmm?" Akane inquired, her eyes watching the setting sun.

"You _are_ my best friend, right?"

"Yeah, no doubt, why?"

"Ryoga said that his parents were best friends before they got married."

"Yeah, so?"

"When we get older, you think we'd still be best friends?"

It was silent for a moment before the sun had completely set and the streetlights surrounding the park lit up, illuminating the dark.

"I don't see why not, why?" Akane asked.

"Well, uh," Ranma fidgeted, "You think you'd want to marry me when we get older, 'cuz that's what Ryoga said his parents told him. He told me that best friends marry like that, and then he said that I was lucky 'cuz I had you."

"Ohh, I guess that would be okay. That way it would be like spending the night together all the time right? And we could always play!"

"Yeah!"

Akane turned to Ranma and smiled, "That would be fun, Ranma-kun!"

Ranma smiled and the two giggled at their conversation before they heard their parents calling them from down below, saying it was time to go. Ranma reached over and clasped Akane's hand and said, "Let's go home!"

With a curt nod, Akane followed Ranma down the tree and ran into the open arms of their parents. Being hoisted by their fathers, they waved good night to each other.

"Did you and Akane have fun in the park today?" Nodoka asked, looking over her shoulder to her tired son in his father's embrace.

With a toothy grin, Ranma responded, "Yeah! Akane-chan said she would marry me." Genma chuckled as he patted his son's back, "Now boy, where did you get an idea to ask Akane to marry you?"

Now Ranma was confused as they continued home, "Don't best friends marry each other?"

It was Nodoka's turn to chuckle as she ruffled his hair, "You can look at it that way, sweetie." Ranma blinked as he yawned and shrugged it off and fell into dreamland.

Meanwhile, in the other direction, Soun held his youngest daughter firmly as they walked out of the park. Kasumi walked alongside him, and Nabiki had her hand in her father's free hand.

"Had fun today?" Soun asked his kids.

"I found 50 yen in the sandbox!" Nabiki exclaimed as she looked up to her father, holding the coin up with her other hand.

Soun smiled at his middle child, "Will you be saving it?"

Nabiki nodded as she put it back in her pocket. "I finished my chapter book today!" Kasumi chirped in, "I enjoyed it, and it seems that there is another book in the series, can I get it, father?" She looked up at him with the dearest eyes and he gave in, "Of course, sweetheart."

"What about you, Akane?" Soun asked over his shoulder.

"Had a blast, and oh! Ranma-kun asked me to marry him when we get older and I said it was okay!" Akane cheerfully told him. Her father smiled down at her, "Happy about that, princess?" Bobbing her head up and down, Akane replied, "Yeah! That way we can play every day!" The innocence of a child's mind intrigued Soun as he hoisted his daughter a bit higher on his side and continued the walk on home.

They concept of marriage came easy to children, but they had no idea of the true reason behind it until they got older. Regardless, it did not stop Soun from smiling at his daughters' antics.

#

Ranma and Akane have known each other since they were in diapers, so it was not surprising that they did everything together in and out of school. Their friendship was easily envied by the other kids and even some of the adults.

After school, they were normally seen playing in the park or at each other's houses. But, over the course of the years, their play dates diminished as they formed new friendships. But, they still held onto one another.

Then when they were 10 years old, the most devastating news that altered their friendship forever came into play.

"What? You're kidding, right?" Akane said, flabbergasted as she put down her chopsticks to stare incredulously at Ranma. He was shoving food down his mouth as he replied, "Wish I was, but pop's job is makin' him transfer," he popped the last shrimp into his mouth, "We're leavin' next week."

Next week?

"Ah, but Ranma-kun," Akane said, "..."

"What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Will we still be friends?" she whispered, her eyes downcast.

Ranma looked over at his friend, his heart starting to beat erratically. He noticed that that only ever happened around Akane, he figured it came with being friends for so long.

"No way, Akane-chan," he started, smirking at her sad face, "Trust me, we will always be _best_ friends, dummy." At that, she perked up and playfully punched his arm, "Okay, then...I'll be fine with you moving as long as you promise to call me!" He grinned wildly, "You know it!"

#

The Saotome's have been living in China for six months now.

"No way! Congrats on making the team!" Ranma said into the phone. He could just picture Akane's bright face as she told him the news of making it on the basketball team.

"Yeah! And I got a part in the school play!" Akane giggled as she twirled the phone cord in her fingers, "Ryoga did too!"

"That punk did! Haha, no way!" Ranma laughed.

"It's true, oh, I have to go now Ranma-kun, I'll talk to you later!" Akane said as she remembered her homework.

"Okay, bye!" Ranma hesitated as he put down the receiver. He stared at the stationary object for a moment more before bed.

Every day they managed to talk for an hour on the phone. They shared their daily activities and accomplishments. But mostly, to hear each other's voices.

But, over time their calls diminished. The everyday calls turned to once a week, which in turn changed to once a month. Then, after three years of being apart, the calls stopped altogether and Ranma forgot about his life back in Japan.

But the reason they stopped was not because Akane forgot about him, or Ranma forgetting to call Akane, but because lives went on. In Ranma's case, he made new friends and learned a new language. Practiced martial arts and became quite the man.

However, for Akane, everything turned for the worse. She had began developing into a young lady whom the boys favored. She had joined many sports and even continued her practice in martial arts. She had a fiery attitude and sunny outlook on life. She had even grown out her hair!

She once had.

That all changed when she was 13 years old. It was a normal day as she was walking home from school from a play practice when it happened.

Her world turned black as she was taken from the back and dragged into a nightmare she would never forget. In her eyes, her trust in men was skewed as one broke her that night.

Her father was a wreck when he received the call from police about his daughter. The two elder sisters were stricken with grief as they looked on at their baby sister who sat emotionless on her bed.

Her sunny smile never came back, she barely spoke and never trusted another male, aside from her father. At school, she dropped from her activities and focused on her studies. After the incident, she had cut her hair back to the short crop and wore clothes that hid her body. A new shell formed around Akane as she strived to go forward and forget her past.

Even so, the memories of Ranma were now long forgotten.

**Author's Note  
><strong>Okay, here is the premise of one of my alternative universe fanfictions. This one came to me a few hours ago and I wanted to write on it. This will probably consist of six-seven chapters. This one was not intended to be too long. I will be writing this on my mobile phone. Next chapter will be happier, by the way. :)

_4/08/2012: _Alright buddies, here is the revised version. I went back fixed the spelling and grammar and fixed where necessary. Nothing was lost in it, and if you came back and re-read it should be the same, except for more fluidly content (and visually pleasing!)


	2. Story 2: Ranma

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 2: Ranma

"We have a new student today, he is from Japan. His name is Saotome, Ranma." the teacher said from behind the desk as 10-year old Ranma stood at the front of the class with a huge grin on his face. The teacher ushered him to an empty desk next to a boy with coke bottled glasses and long black hair.

As Ranma took his seat, the boy turned to him and greeted, "Hey, welcome to China, I'm Mu Tsu."

"Mousse?" Ranma tried to say.

Mousse gave a half smirk, "Close enough, I guess."

Ranma leaned over his desk and patted his shoulder, "Nice to meet cha, Mousse!"

"Same to you," Mousse managed to say before the teacher called their attention to start the lecture for the day.

Ranma sat back in his seat as his head turned to the open window. The corners of his lips turned into a smile as he recalled Akane's smiling face before he had to board the plane. It has already been a week, and despite hearing her voice on the phone everyday he missed her terribly.

The rapping of a ruler brought his attention back, snapping him out of his reverie and back into the real world. "I know it is your first day and all, but do pay attention," the teacher told him sternly before turning his back to continue writing on the board and talking. Ranma let out a sigh as he forcrd himself to sit up and pretend he was paying attention, but his mind was elsewhere.

It became an after school ritual where Akane would call around the time Ranma came home. The two friends would talk, nonstop, as if their worlds depended on it, for an hour about their day. It was commonplace to see Ranma talking animatedly whenever their calls took place, his laughter echoing in the family room.

But, life went on for the two. Especially for Ranma. He became quite the popular student quite fast in his new school. After learning about the dojo down the street from his home, he made it a priority to train everyday - right after school.

This meant his regular phones had to be cut down, he managed to call every Saturday morning despite his new schedule. And at those times, he was the happiest. Her voice seemed to always cheer him up, and at times he regretted that he choose to take his martial arts lessons after class. He would much rather listen to his friend than his master.

But, martial arts became his life. In school, he represented them in tournaments and never brought shame to their name. His friendship with Mousse allowed him a sparring partner, as well a comrade. Light sparring in his backyard became the norm at the Saotome household every Sunday evening. Ranma even had a fanclub at school that woukd follow him around.

Life was good.

He was a moderate student, made average grades and had a quite active lifestyle. His training molded him into the picture perfect represenative of a fit teenage boy. The girls sure noticed, and he did too.

After all, he was 13 now. Not that long ago, his phone calls with his friend back in Japan had turned to once a month calls, but in the past three months there were no calls to his house. And quite frankly, he had made no effort in trying to reach his old friend.

Their communication was nonexistent.

But, Ranma's reputation blossomed. Being one of the best martial artists in the prefecture, he gained popularity from the surrounding provinces and was invited to many tournaments. In school, he was revered as the most popular and sought out boy. He was quite the looker.

To say he did not have any interest in the girls that flocked over him would be an understatment. Each week, it seemed, he had a new girlfriend around his arms. Ranma Saotome lived a very good life.

He has been living in China for eight years now. Ranma mastered a proficient way to speak Chinese and had a grandoise reputation that surrounded him. He had women all over him and men envious.

#

Ranma sat in his chair, balancing on the back two pegs when his newest fling waltzed over and placed her arms around his neck and whispered into his ear, "Morning, Ranma." A grin washed over his face as he tipped forward and brought the girl along with him, making her giggle as he gave a chaste kiss on her lips, "Hey, Shampoo." The girl giggled as she released her hold and stood in front of him, her hands on her hips, "Date tomorrow, right?" He winked to indicate a yes and she sauntered away to join the giggling girls a few seats away.

"Man, don't you get tired of all that attention?"

Ranma turned his head to see his friend Mousse sporting a ridiculus grin, "She's your what," he stopped and held up his hand to count the fingers off, "Third girl you're bringing out on a date, just this week...and," he took a seat, "It's only Tuesday."

Ranma gave a half shrug, "Whatever man, these girls just want a date, nothing else," he grinned evilly, "I won't let them have _that _satisfaction." The two boys laughed comically but was interuppted by the teacher calling attention and the room grew silent as he proceeded to tell of the school announcments and begin class.

The day went by as normal as possible for Ranma. He attended his lesson at the dojo and even got in a spar with Mousse before he headed inside his home. Slipping off his shoes, he called out, "Hey! I'm home! What's for dinner?"

He had expected his mother to respond with what dishes she had prepared, so imagine his surprise when he came across his father sitting at the table with take out boxes opened out in front of him.

"Yo, what's with the take out," Ranma asked out of curiosity as he took his seat and reached for his chopsticks, "What's the occasion? Where's mom?"

He began to shovel food down his mouth, all the while staring at his father with a raised eyebrow. Genma surpress a cough and then replied, "She's currently on a plane back to Japan." Ranma' chopsticks clattered to the floor as he watched his father disbelievingly. "What do ya mean, pop?" was a he could muster up to say. He was already setting himself up for the worse.

"Your mother went ahead to ready the house, we're going back to Japan. I am being transferred back," Genma said coolly.

Ranma's eyes narrowed, "Oh, man, here I thought she left you," he joked. His father shot him a glare. Ranma raised his arms in a "did-not-mean-it" gesture. His father let out a sigh and stood up, "We're leaving in a week. Tomorrow will be your last day in school, so say your good byes." With that, he left his son in the room with his thoughts.

#

When he told his classmates that he was leaving, pandemonium broke loose. Girls were exclaiming their undying, unrequited, love for him and boys were sad to see a good athlete leave their school. The girls he had dates with were heart broken to not have their dates afterall. At his dojo, his master told him he was sad to see him go.

For his leaving, Mousse had organized a good bye party to be held that Friday at his house. Everyone and everybody was going to be there.

That Friday, Ranma partied it out with his friends and enjoyed himself immensely. Towards the end, he sat out on the veranda with Mousse drinking fruit punch. Ranma chided Mousse with a light punch to his arm, "Thanks man, for this, for everything. You've been a great pal." All Mousse could do was nod and reply, "Man, anything for my best friend."

Ranma's brows furrowed slightly as Mousse had said those words. Something in the back of his mind started to resurface, but the pull was not enough. So, he disregarded it and smiled up at the night sky. "Yeah, best friends."

**_author's note_**

In short, Ranma had a normal life, maybe even above average if you look at it that way. So, here I presented you with Ranma's life without Akane, after his move. It's a happier tone, yes?

Next up is Akane's, and it will be a bit longer than Ranma's as she had to face different challenges.

And thank you everyone for your reviews! :) It means so very much to me!


	3. Story 3: Akane

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 3: Akane

Each day, Akane had her little hand pressing the numbers in sequence to call her friend in China. She would move about with the cord trailing behind her as she listened to the rings.

Riing. Riiing. Riiiiiing.

"Saotome residence, Nodoka speaking," Ranma's mother answered.

"It's me, Akane! Can I please talk to Ranma-kun?" Akane asked eagerly.

"Hello my dear, of course you can. Let me get him," Nodoka replied, a smile on her face as she handed the phone to the estatic Ranma.

"Akane-chan!" Ranma exclaimed into the phone.

"Heey! I miss you!" Akane replied.

"Me too! Hey, mom told me you are still going to the lessons?"

"Yup! Teacher said I will be moving up the next belt at the next grading!"

"Woah! Man I wish I could be there!"

"I wish I was there for yours! I'll catch up soon!"

"Yeah! I believe in you, you can do it!"

The conversation went on like that for the rest of the hour until he had to go. Once her talks were over with, Akane was always left with a longing feeling at the pit of her stomach. And it grew as their talks began to reduce over time.

So, in the mean time she practiced the arts and participated in sports. Her days were occupied with activities that had her running ragged each night, but she had this drive for determination that easily overcame that feeling

It came to no surprise that she grew up into a very lovely lady. Akane grew her hair out and was the definition of beauty. Her years of practicing the art and being active allowed her to have a form fitting body, that she hid away from the world because of her modest upbringing.

She had many friends and many suitors too. Her father was more than happy to voice his opinion that no boy was good enough for his princess and she was not allowed to date. That did not faze Akane as she focused hard in school and in her social life.

Sadly, no more than two months after her 13th birthday and one of the very last phone calls she would share with her childhood friend, her life changed.

It was close to seven in the evening when she left the school grounds where she had to attend the practice for the upcoming play. Her hair was tied back, her satchel swung over her shoulder, and all her worries were off her shoulders.

Earlier in the day she had gotten a perfect on the pop quiz and even managed the winning basket in gym. Her mind was elsewhere when a pair of burly arms grabbed her from behind. Despite her accute senses from years of the art, she was caught unaware by her attacker. He had crushed her to his front, keeping her binded with one hand over her mouth and the other roaming her body.

"Mmhmm," he moaned and let out a hot breath next to her ear, the smell of it laced with liquor as it filled Akane's nostrils.

Her stomach churned and she struggled against his hold, but each squirm made him grip her harder, hurting her in the process.

"Don't struggle, it'll just make it worse," he breathed into her ear, "Mmhmm, you feel nice." His free arm wandered lower and went under her skirt, Akane tried to flail but he was stronger.

Tears sprung up in her eyes, they began to cascade down her small face. Into the hand over her mouth, she let out a scream that made her eyes roll back and tears of pain sprang forward as he took away her innocence.

She was left in the alley, her skirt pulled way above her waist and her panties torn and tossed aside. Blood ran down her thighs as she curled into a fetal position, crying.

She heard footsteps and quickly retracted into a ball, shaking in fear. A crackle from a radio made her look up to stare eye-to-eye with a female police officer with a sad look on her face. The officer reached out and held Akane's face in her hand and whispered softly, "Shh, it'll be okay, sweetheart. No one's going to hurt you."

All Akane could do was cry as two other officers arrived at the scene and loaded Akane up to be checked on by the doctor down at the station.

The doctor gave Akane some pain medication and just as he was about to leave, her father came bursting through the doors. He ran to his daughter and held her in tight embrace, the tears falling over his cheeks, "My princess, my baby, it'll be okay, daddy's here," he said as he rubbed her back as she cried in his arms.

Kasumi and Nabiki had followed after him and threw their arms around their baby sister. The family stayed in the room, all hugging Akane for a while before the officer from before came by to check up on Akane.

Soun thanked her profusely, over and over again, and all the officer could do was reassure him it was no problem and that he and his daughters should head home now. Soun made it the case that he wanted that rapist found and that justice should take place. The female officer nodded, "As it should be sir."

That day changed the Tendo household in its entirety. Two days later when Akane returned back to school, she quit all the teams she was on and sadly renounced her role in the play. She was silent, and more importantly, a changed person. Her long hair that once framed her face was gone, and was replaced with the familiar page cut she had sported when she was a child.

#

Kasumi was silent as she tended to Akane's small bruises on her wrists, but was caught off guard when Akane finally spoke.

"Kachan?" she whispered softly.

Her eyes softened as she looked at her baby sister, "Yes?"

Akane's small hand reached up to grab a lock of hair, "C-can you cut my hair? Like I used to have it?"

Blinking, Kasumi was shocked to hear her sister suddenly proclaim something like that, "Ah, I can, but... why?" she reached out and held the long silky hair between her fingers, "You look so beautiful with long hair, Akchan."

What happened next shocked Kasumi to no end. Akane had abruptly got to her feet, tears spilling down the side of her face, "No! I don't want to be beautiful! Off! I want it all off!". She cried as she collasped onto the floor, her hair hanging around her shoulders, "I don't want to be beautiful, I don't want to be anything."

Tears swelled up in the elder girl as she knelt down and hugged her sister and calmly said, "Okay, okay, shhh now. No more crying."

#

In class, Akane kept her head down as as she listened to the lecture. Every so often she would raise her head slightly to write down some notes, but all the same remained in the same position.

Everything she had once believed in came crashing down that day. Her eyes roamed the classroom to see the boys' in her class. Boys that wore the same leer as they stared at girls, the same glint that her nightmare had wore. She shuddered, feeling a cold shiver and held herself. The cuffs of her uniform had risen slightly and the purple bruises stared back at her mockingly.

Her control left her as she remembered the pain.

Tears threatened to appear, but she bit her tongue.

She would cry later, at home, that way...the walls she set up at school would not come crumbling down.

At lunch, she sought out her older sister Nabiki. She found her at the lunch table and was on her way when she was intercepted by two jerky boys who were in Nabiki's grade.

They flashed a grin at Akane, and she felt her knees about to give in. Words were coming out of their mouth, and laughter too, but Akane could not hear it. Her eyes got big when one reached out for her, and all she could do was shrink back, closing her eyes tight only to open them after hearing a deafening smack.

Nabiki stood in front of her, panting as she had her arm outstretched before her, open palmed, "Don't you dare lay a finger on my sister."

The cafeteria grew silent as they watched the two Tendo sisters leave the scene and the door behind them shut with a click.

#

It has been five years since then, and Kasumi and Nabiki had graduated from high school. Akane is in her last year of high school, where she is the top student, academically. Nabiki left impression of a money grubbing Ice Queen that no one messed with. And Kasumi as the sweetheart of the school. It looked like Akane had valedictorian up her sleeve.

Most of the time, Akane would be seen in the library reading a book by herself or studying in an empty classroom during lunch.

When she was not in school, she wore clothes that hid her body, and kept her hair short. But despite that guise, her natural beauty shone through and she still had many admirers.

It came to the student's attentions the state that Akane was in years ago by the news of a captured rapist who then commited suicide on the news. That changed the way they saw Akane. They had pity in their hearts and watched with sad eyes a girl who could have been everything, choose to be nothing.

However, in Akane's case, that motivated her to get stronger, to never find herself in that kind of position again. She trained and trained, and after all her hard work became the highest rank she could attain in her art. This kept her going because a little voice in her mind kept whispering something to her.

She never made it out, but it kept her looking forward to the challenges she will be forced to fight because sooner or later - she could not stay broken forever.

**_author's note_**

Well! Here is Akane's little timeline, hopefully it is good for you as it was for me! The next few chapters will entail them meeting and a couple of flashbacks that accompany their encounter.


	4. Story 4: Recollection

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 4: Recollection

Akane tapped the end of her pencil on her desk as she concentrated on the mathematics problem before her. The incessant noise made Sayuri look up and poke her with her own writing utensil, "Knock it off, Akane, that's distracting."

Looking over her shoulder, she muttered an apology to her friend and returned back to the lone problem on her page. She internally growled at the example drawn up on the board that supposedly similar to her own and swore under her breath. The clicking sound of the analog clock began to echo in her ears as she stared down at the problem. Her pencil began to dance between her fingers as she truly thought hard about the problem and how to go about solving it. Just then, she dropped her pencil and let out a small exclaimination of joy as she finally figured out how to solve it. Grinning madly to herself, she reached for her fallen pencil and began to scribble on the solution.

"Time!" the teacher exclaimed as the little timer on the edge of the desk began to ring. The class began to shuffle papers and passed their assignment to the front. Akane let out a sigh of relief as she leaned back in her seat to see Sayuri grinning down at her, as well as Yuka, who sat in the seat next to Sayuri. Akane gave a small smile to her friends as the class began to come alive with chatter as it was only a few minutes before school was dismissed.

"That was such a horrid problem," Akane commented as she shifted in her seat to face her two friends more comfortably. Her companions nodded their heads and soon they began to engage in conversation about the weekend. Yuka had said something about seeing her cousins in Osaka and Sayuri was going to be at the basketball tournament all weekend.

The two girls looked at their short haired friend, "How about you, Akane?"

Akane gave a half shrug, "Maybe finish reading that book... or watch some television. Nothing too flashy." Her friends groaned and Akane could not help but giggle at their antics. But, it was true. She had nothing planned so she would probably be relaxing at home or at the dojo. However, she understood her friends' true intentions, they wanted her to go out and socialize, rather than be at home.

A soft sigh escaped Akane's lips as the bell to end the day rang and the class readied to leave. Just as Akane was standing up, Ryoga had approached her. Akane turned to the boy and gave a very small smile, "Oh, one second Ryoga, okay?" He seemed to gulp nervously as he nodded his head and went outside.

Yuka said, "Ryoga likes you, Akane."

With another shrug Akane replied, "He's just being polite, besides we've known each other since elementary, I would know if he liked me or not."

_And I would prefer it if he didn't like me. _

"Have fun this weekend guys," Akane said as she gathered the last of her posessions and headed out the door. She met Ryoga at the school entrance and they began their walk home..

It was weird, at first, when Ryoga had started escorting Akane after school. Soun was overly protective of his youngest child and had asked his trusted friend and neighbor, that perhaps his son could walk home with his daughter, since they lived in the same direction. He did not want his daughter walking in the streets alone.

Yet, after time, their walks became normal, but... Akane always walked beside Ryoga with at least arms length between them. Their walks usually consisted of silence between the two teenagers. At most, small talk was the extent of their conversations. She casted a quick glance at her acquaintance and asked, "How was China?"

#

_Soun stood distraught as he watched his daughter walk to school by herself that morning. She assured him that she would be fine, that she had to do this sometime in the future anyways. _

_He gave in, but steadily watched his daughter walk to school. Running his hand through his hair, Soun was a bit peeved that the Hibiki's went to China and even brought along their son._

_Hibiki worked the same line of work as Saotome, but his branch of research stayed in Japan. An important message was relayed that called for Hibiki's cameo in China and soon they were off. _

_Soun sighed as he wandered what their line of work was that whipped them across the world so willy nilly like that._

#

"..." Ryoga was silent as he looked forward and continued walking, "Oh, erm, okay." Akane casted a glance at him, and she let out a sigh. In the last few years, Ryoga was of the very few, only one at that, boys' she let into her life. True, he was not that close to her, but he was there. Her uneasiness around him was more aloof than with other males, but the fact remained: he was her friend.

"I saw Saotome," Ryoga shrugged.

Akane scrunched her face, "Who?"

Ryoga casted a disbelieving look at his companion and saw her genuine look of confusion. Hope swelled in him, and he brushed it off as an old friend. Akane gave a shrug. "But... another thing," Ryoga seemed to hesitate, he had thought long and hard about this for some time, "I figured out the reason for my dad's line of work."

"He some kind of spy?" Akane joked.

Ryoga laughed at this, "No, but have you ever heard of Jusenkyo?"

"Those fabled springs in China?" Akane inquired. Of course she knew about them, having spent timeless amount of reading in the library she had come across it once or twice.

"What would you do if I told you it was real?" he asked.

Akane laughed, "Ryoga, it's just a fairy tale story, nothing more than sweet nothings to children's ears for a bedtime story."

He stopped in his tracks and looked at Akane. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

_Surely he must be jesting. Pulling my leg, exactly what does his father do?_

"My father is a scientist, Akane. His focus is on water based induced theories. In Japan, there are rumoured springs that are connected to their sister counterpart in China. However, it was called to his attention that the water samples they took from Jusenkyo had materialized into a solid. He was asked to come to China and help deliberate its contents."

"In short, all they found were two compounds. Hydrogen and oxygen; the base for plain water... how it solidified at room temperature like it had, had baffled the research group. They went back to get another sample and I had tagged along."

"Jusenkyo is absoutely a breath taking place. There were hundreds of springs everywhere, however... I fell into one of the springs by accident. Spring of Drowned Pig."

Akane had this ludacris look on her face, "Ryoga you must be kidding me, quit joking."

Ryogs shook his head furiously, "No, Akane-san, it's the truth, splashed with water the curse is activated, splashed with hot returns you back to your original form!"

Shaking her head furiously, "Ryoga, I get the whole fairies and pixies beliefs, but Jusenkyo is a folk lore, okay? Can we please stop talking about this?" Her head began to ache from the conversation and began to walk on, "I just wanna get home."

How that ever came up, Akane will never know, but she was tired of talking with Ryoga. If the boys were not trying to ask her out, they would try to mess with her like Ryoga had - it was always one matter or the other. Quite frankly, she wished they would leave her alone.

#

"Just great," mumbled Ranma as he shook his head free of the excess water that the sprinkler had coated him with. He looked down at his now smaller hands and groaned, he hated when he turned into a girl. He let out a small grunt as he remembered how he contracted the curse in the first place and shoved his hands into his pockets. Still a bit miffed he did not see the sprinklers beforehand, he took that moment to glance around his new neighborhood.

Nostalgia filled his senses as he recalled just bits and pieces of his childhood resurface as he looked on at the vague surroundings. A small smiled tugged at the corner of his lips as he began to go back home and change back.

#

"Akane-san!" Ryoga pleaded as he followed the girl, "I'm not teasing you, it's true, I just thought that I would let you know b-before I-I..."

Akane stopped and turned to face Ryoga, "Before you what, Ryoga?"

He swallowed hard and sweat beaded down the side of his face, clenching his fists he mustered his voice, "Will you go out w-with me?" Akane furrowed her brows and her breath was caught in her throat, she let out a soft cough, "With or without that ridiculus story, confession...whatever, I would still say no. Sorry, Ryoga."

"But, why?" he said, heartbroken.

Akane sighed as she turned around, starting her way back, "I-I am just not looking for a relationship right now." Placing one foot in front of the other, she began her trek home. No more than a few steps in, a hand had grasped her shoulder. She stood frozen midstep as the memories of her past flooded back into her mind. Quickly, she brought up both her arms, grabbed the offending hand and thrusted the individual over her shoulder.

Her breathing was uneasy as her eyes were filled with fear, she looked at the figure laying before her. She let out a sharp breath and quickly turned and ran. She felt tears on the brink of escaping as she rounded the corner.

#

With a large oomph, two bodies collided with one another. "Hey, watch where you're goin'," grumbled the female Ranma as he collected himself, dusting the imaginary dust off his shirt. He looked up to see his offender and his breath hitched. A really attractive girl was bent over at the waist, her hand clutching her chest as if she was beating her lungs in order to breath properly, stood in front of him.

_She's really cute, hmm. Wonder why she's in such a rush..._

"S-sorry," Akane finally caught her breath, but the tears were still ever-so-present as she lifted her head to see who she ran into. A light sigh of relief that it was a girl made her situtation more at ease as Akane straightened up and rubbed her eyes.

Ranma stared at the girl, baffled by her actions. A fluttering feeling began to form in the pit of his stomach, and somewhere, in the recess of his mind - he could have sworn he knew this girl. "It's cool," Ranma said, "Are ya okay?"

Akane took in a deep breath, "Yeah...yeah, I'm fine, sorry about that." A smile tugged at the corners of Ranma's lips as he took in the sight of the girl, "Ain't a problem where ya going in a rush like that?"

"Home." she said.

That word made Ranma stop his actions and stare at his new aquaintaince. The way she had said it brought back a very hazy memory involving him as a child and the trees in the local park. He was with someone, a friend, but their face was not strong enough to dispeal any physical attributes.

"Oh," was all Ranma managed before the sound of footsteps became louder. The two girls turned and looked to see a battered, but still strong, Ryoga calling out Akane's name.

"Oh no!" Akane gasped as she turned to leave, "I can't stay, but it was nice meeting you -" she called over her shoulder. Ranma watched her head down the street and turned into a house. Just then, the boy that was chasing her collapsed a foot away from Ranma. He raised an eyebrow at the scene that unfolded before him, trying to put two and two together. He then came to the assumption that this punk on the ground was the cause of that pretty girls' dismay.

But then a sudden realization hit him - that bandana the boy was wearing was too familiar. He called out, "Is that you, Hibiki?" Ryoga craned his neck to see a busty red-headed girl look at him with the most curious eyes. He narrowed his own as he growled, "Saotome."

To say Ranma was shocked is the understatement of the year. "How do you now that?" Ranma exclaimed, some embarassment evident in his voice. Ryoga slowly got up and removed the debris on his clothes, "Father told me about your curse," a hallow laugh followed, "Quite the fun curse you got there, ehh?"

Ranma narrowed his eyes at his old _friend_ and replied, "Shut up." Ryoga smirked as he gave a half shrug, "Must suck for you, being half a man must really be a blow to your pride."

The temptation to pummel the boy was really looking appealing to Ranma as he clenched his fist as he barked back, "Yeah, looks like your manliness is taking a toll too, seeing how that girl practically ran away from you."

It was Ryoga's turn to flinch, "That doesn't concern you. We had a misunderstanding."

"She's way outta your league," Ranma retorted with a snort, "I think you misunderstood her."

For a moment, Ryoga did not say anything. He stood there thinking, analyzing the situation at hand - Ranma had no idea who that girl was! He laughed to himself as he finally spoke up, "Whatever, I've known her since elementary, what I do is my business. So, butt out." With that, Ryoga made the move to go around Ranma and ran the path that Akane had taken.

Not satisfied with the end result, Ranma ran after him, "Get back here, asshole!"

The two boys skidded into the front lawn where Akane was just going through the family room's doors. Ryoga called out to Akane and she flinched, she gripped the doors and attempted to shut it, "I said I wasn't interested, Ryoga!"

At this, Ranma had cut in front of Ryoga, pulling him forward and then knocking him down with his elbow, "The lady says she ain't interested, ya punk!". Ryoga landed with a huge thunk to the ground and passed out. Ranma let out a long breath and muttered, "Don't just run out in the middle of the conversation, you jackass."

While Ranma tried to calm down, he felt a small hand land on his shoulder. He turned around to come face-to-face with the girl again, "Hey, thanks for that, but it wasn't neccessary."

Ranma blushed as he managed a closer look at the girl, she was much more beautiful close up. "Aww, hell. He was botherin' you, damn Hibiki."

"You know him?"

"Since we were kids, but I moved since then."

"Oh, what's your name?"

"Ran-" he hesitated as he looked down and noticed that he was still in his cursed form. Part of him wanted to say his real name, but he rarely went out in public as a girl - he is a man, after all. "-ko. My name is Ranko."

"Oh, Ryoga's never mentioned a Ranko, but it is still nice to meet you again, Ranko."

Ranma smiled at her as she extended her arm out to him, he watched curiously as she grinned at him, "My name is Tendo, Akane. You can call me Akane."

#

_"Can I call you Akane-chan?" Ranma asked as he peered over at the girl whose hand was clasped in his._

_"As long as I can call you Ranma-kun, I don't mind," Akane said as she grinned at him, "We're friends, for always, so its okay."_

_"Always and forever?" he asked._

_"And longer than that, we'll never not be friends, Ranma-kun!" she giggled as she gave her friend a kiss on the cheek._

_"Good, 'cuz I plan on never letting you go!" Ranma chided as he returned the playful kiss._

_"Then maybe when we're older, I'll be able to say I'm not afraid to fall because you'll be there!"_

_The two kids unhooked hands and extended their pinks and clapsed them together, "It's a promise!"_

#

"T-Tendo-san?" Ranma said in a whisper, as his memories flooded his mind.

"Oh, just call me Akane! It's fine!" she said with a smile that melted Ranma's heart. He started to remember and his heart could not take it.

This is her. This was _his_ Akane-chan.

**_author's note_**

Sorry for the long wait, I was drawing and getting ready and cleaning. Also tumblrin' hehe. I hope to update soon, and hopefullt finish that other AU I am also writing on, it's first chapter at least. In that one, it is a different story. Okk! FMA:Brotherhood is on, I want to watch :)


	5. Story 5: Friends

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 5: Friends

Akane smiled at her new friend, "I am sure Uncle Hibiki will come by and pick up Ryoga," she said as she gave a quick glance at his unconcious body and sighed. Ranma looked over his shoulder and noted that he may have over done it. He fidgeted for a brief moment before Akane suddenly spoke up, "Ah, Ranko, would you like an afternoon snack? My eldest sister always prepares me something for when I get home."

Ranma blinked. Once, twice and then responded, "Sure, if it ain't a problem."

Nodding her head, she indicated that it was none at all. So, with that, he followed after her into the family room. His familiar surroundings enticed him as he sat down and Akane went into the kitchen for a moment. Just then, a tall slender lady with her hair pulled into a side ponytail entered the room.

"Oh, hello! Are you one of Akane's friends?" Kasumi asked warmly as she spotted the red head.

"Uhm," he hesitated, was he a friend?

"Kasumi that's Ranko, I just met her," Akane said as she came back with a tray in her hands and set it down. "Ranko, this is my eldest sister Kasumi." With a curt nod, he acknowledged this information. A warm smile found its way on Kasumi's face, "It's so nice to meet you, Ranko. Please enjoy those snacks," she then turned her attention to Akane, "I'll be back, I have to get the groceries for dinner tonight." With a light nod, she left the two girls to their snacks.

Akane offered the plate and Ranma took one and popped it in his mouth, the flavors of such a plain looking onigiri exploded in his mouth. "Wow!" he exclaimed as he reached for another one, "They're delicious!" Akane giggled as she took a bite out of hers, "Yeah, Kasumi makes the best." Ranma nodded his head in agreement as he ate his third one.

"Do you practice martial arts?" Akane questioned.

After stuffing his face, Ranma patted his tummy before turning a content face to her, "Yeah, a bit of kenpo."

Akane's face lit up, causing Ranma to blush slightly at the cute disposition she displayed as she continued on to say, "I haven't met many other girls who say that they are interested in this sort of thing." At that statement, Ranma replied, "Neither have I."

"Do you want to spar?" Akane asked eagerly, her eyes brimming with excitment. Ranma gulped nervously as he looked at her, and muttered, "S-sure." With that, Akane grabbed his wrist and dragged him across the household and into the dojo. When they arrived, Ranma was astonished at the sight. It had been years since he had set foot in here, but it still had its unique charm with its beautifully polished floors and sturdy walls. Akane finally let go and stood away from him in a fighting pose. Ranma followed suit, and soon a light spar was underway.

Curiosity got the best of him, "You're quite good, how long have you been training?" He found himself dodging a kick as he asked.

"Years now," she said between breaths as she launched punch after punch. Her movements were jerky, but they were solid. Ramma found himself in a tight spot as he soon found out her skills were not that far behind his. The momentum of her attacks were fueled by some sort of trepidation, and it bothered him.

What drove her to fight like this?

#

Akane breathed: in and out. She focused herself in the sparring, each movment brought up her intensity to win. This was the first time she ever sparred with another girl, in her lessons it had always been guys, or her teacher. The majority of the time she had sparred with her teacher, as she was relunanct to spar with the other boys.

She did not want them touching her.

If she did spar with one, and it was rare if she did, she never held back. Her shame, anger, and pride would rise to the surface, and all she could see is beating her attacker. She would fight for her voice she lost that night and in return get the satisfaction of the win.

Akane watched Ranko; studying her livid motions as well. She had initially planned on making this a light, playful spar but she noticed her potential. This sparked an interest in Akane. Her friends never showed interest in martial arts as they prferred the more normal scene of shopping and gossip.

She was enticed, to say the least, that maybe Ranko could be a friend. And God only knows how much Akane needed a friend she could share a common interest with.

#

While Ranma wondered about his childhood friend, he left himelf momentarily open and Akane had taken advantage of that and tagged him. Her lips parted as she smiled, "Point, I win, Ranko."

Ranma stumbled back, shocked that that not only was he bested in a spar - he was defeated by a girl! His pride was instantly crushed, but the moment Akane beamed at him, it paled in comparison to the erratic beating of his heart.

"Y-yeah," he stuttered as he collected himself and stared at Akane. She held her grin for a moment longer before extending her arm, "Want to be friends?"

#

Want to be friends?

Be friends?

Friends?

Ranma, now in his original male form, sat confused on his unmade bed. He ran his hands through his hair as he recollected his afternoon. The girl he met was his Akane-chan from when he was a kid. She appeared to be the same fiery girl he once knew, but he saw she was very wary of who her audience was. The way she acted around Ryoga was really different from when she met Ranko.

Ranko.

He groaned as he laid down, smacking his face lightly with one hand as he remembered the false name he had given her. A pang of guilt hit him in the stomach as he recalled shaking her hand in confirmation that Ranko would be her friend. The look of excitment did not escape Ranma as they shook hands. He did not know why he kept thay charade go on as long as he had.

When he lived in China, he had no problem avoiding contact with other people if he accidently changed forms in public. Not even a full day in Japan, he had misled his childhood friend.

Oh, that.

That also pained him, somewhat, but not too much - seeing how he could not blame her. But... would she remember him, as he did her? His stomach churned at the possibilities. Turning onto his side, he closed his eyes as he fell asleep, her name escaping his lips as they turned into a smile.

At the break of dawn, Ranma had already risen before his parents and made his way downstairs. Stretching his arms above his head, he entered the kitchen. The morning rays of sunshine peeked through the curtains above the sink, casting a reddish hue in the room. Ranma groggily made his way to the fridgerator. Opening it, he looked inside for signs of breakfast and then groaned at the lack of food present. His stomach grumbled as he reached for the milk and made preperations for a bowl of cereal.

He could hear the creaking of the floorboard above his head, signaling his parents awakening. Bite after bite, Ranma chewed his food before his mother walked into the kitchen with a weary face, "Good morning, Ranma."

With a grunt, Ranma acknowledged his mother and continued to eat his food. Nodoka made her way across the room and began to pour her a bowl, and another for Genma. She muttered softly, "I need to go grocery shopping." With that, Ranma recalled Akane's family for a brief moment. Her sister had done the same thing yesterday. For some reason, that brought a smile to Ranma's face.

This did not go unnoticed by his mother. "Would you like to accompany me, Ranma?" she asked as she sat down to eat as Genma waddled in, scratching his stomach. Snapping out of his daze, Ranma shook his head, "No, no, I'm gonna explore the town today, see what there is to do." Half shrugging, Nodoka turned to her husband to engage in a light conversation. On the other hand, Ranma finished and went to get ready.

Part of his irrational mind said to go to the Tendo dojo.

But, do what exactly?

He cannot quite go over there and nonchalantly say he was there yesterday, as a girl none-the-less, so his return was called for seeing how he was friends with Akane. But...was he _really_ friends' with her?

As he was walking along the fence post, his mind began to wander scenarios. He recalled their friendly chats and how they slowly diminished. He chasticed himself for not prolonging their communication. It was just a few months after he turned 13 when he had last called. It was supposed to be her turn to call him.

But the call never came.

Maybe she did not want his friendship. How would she have known how he might have turn out? Surely, she did not make him out to be someone that could have been easily replaced after all they have been through... Could she?

Or...

Ranma stopped in his tracks, the fence lining had came to an end and he hopped down to the concrete. Throwing his arms behind his head, he continued to contemplate.

Had she truly forgotten him? He felt a sudden rush of sadness hit him. Were their childhood promises for naught? Just considered childs' play? He recalled how he felt for his young friend back then, it was different. It was a much different feeling than when he was around his other female friends.

Something sparked between them. He could have sworn, that is why he liked her so much then - the feeling was irresistible.

As he rounded a corner, Ranma stopped. He unconciously had made his way back to the Tendo Dojo. In front of him hung the Tendo residence sign. Reaching out, he ran his hand across the engraved wood and stopped.

Another smile crept up his face.

#

_Ranma laughed as he looked at the paper Akane held up in his face. Akane's cheeks puffed as she flashed red, "What's so funny!" His little hands tugged at her wrists, bringing down the paper so he could see her face._

_"Akachan," he started, but was quickly interuppted with a playful smack and small giggle from his friend, "Ranma-kun! You know I don't like that nickname, it sounds silly!"_

_"Okay, okay" Ranma feigned sadness as he still laughed. Causing little Akane to burrow her brows at him, "Ranma-kun!"_

_"But it looks funny what's that," he pointed to a block, " 'supposed to be?" Crinkling her nose as if she was just severly insulted, Akane hotly replied, "The sign! See," she rapted her knuckles to the two blobs in it, "Thats you an' me." Ranma grinned wildly, "Ohh, I get it Akachan," she glared at him with laughter in her eyes, "It's our house, ne?"_

_Nodding proudly, Akane handed him the paper, "Yeah, nyeh nyeh." She said laughing as she playfully stuck her tongue out at him and all Ranma did in response was to laugh with her._

#

"What are you doing?" came a cold voice that surprised Ranma and got him out of his stupor. He turned to face a girl with short brown hair cropping her emotionless face, wearing clothes that were revealing more than he wanted to see.

Not that he minded the eye candy, but her demeanor was so frightening - so cold.

"Ur," was all he could muster up before she had gave him a good once over, and a smirk found its way to her face. "So?" she prodded.

"Admiring the woodwork in your sign here," he said, gaining his confidence back as the casanova personality he had reared its head.

The girl seemed to narrow her eyes slightly, as if she knew something he did not. "Yeah, my baby sister did it," she said as she turned her head to look at the sign, "Took her fifteen broken slabs until we got that one, she isn't much when it comes to crafts. She's a bit of a clutz."

Ranma looked at her, she had said baby sister. That would make her Akane's older sister, and by the looks of it, this girl could be the middle child. He tried to put her in his memories, but all he got was some vision of him forking over his 10 yen to a bratty older kid who he had lost a bet to.

"Nabiki!"

The girl turned her head, Ranma's attention diverted to where the voice came from. Out of the wooden doors, Akane had walked out clad in an oversized striped turtleneck that went past her knees and black leggings. It hid her body really well, but Ranma could still make out her natural curves as her top hugged her form as she walked.

In short, she was breath takingly beautiful.

"Ah, Nabiki," she said, but her voice faltered as she noticed Ranma. He looked at her and caught her gaze, and instantly regretted it. Her eyes reflected hesitation and uneasiness. She broke the gaze as she stopped a bit away from her sister. "Breakfast is ready," she said, to no one in particular, quickly turned around and shuffled back into the house.

Nabiki just nodded her head as her response and turned to see Ranma gazing at where Akane had just previously stood. A sly smile crept up, "You _must _be new in town if you're ogling my sister like that," she commented.

Ranma shook his head, "Uh, what, sorry?"

A soft laugh left Nabiki's lips as she turned to leave, "Don't touch my baby sister, it'll be best if we kept it at that, lover boy." Ranma stared as as the girl left him there with his mouth slightly ajar. He quickly shook out of that trance and carefully made his way around to peer inside the compound. But it fruitless as it was just a door. Sighing, Ranma left the Tendo compound and continued to explore the area.

#

Nabiki had this huge grin spread across her face. As she took her seat, she casted an all too endearing look at Akane.

_Hmm, looks like little Ranma really is back. _

Her mind began to formulate situations, and it was just a little bit too much fun for her, but this is Nabiki - she lives for this. Akane casted a wary glance at her sister as she joined the table for breakfast. She wondered if it had anything to do with the man outside. Shuddering, Akane turned back to the food Kasumi was setting at the table.

"It was really nice to have met your new friend, Akane," Kasumi said as she sat down and started on her bowl. Their father listened to their exchange. Akane smiled as Kasumi continued, "It's so rare for you to make new friends like that, it was a pleasant surprise."

An awkward silence fell over the table. It was then Kasumi noted the mistake in her words. Even Nabiki was shocked at how careless her sister was to slip something like that.

Her chopsticks clattered to the table, her hands trembling. Kasumi's hands flew up to her face, "No, no, sweety, what I intended to mean was that it was nice to meet your new friend, is all."

Akane's eyes began to tear up, but she held them as she gave a meek smile, "It's okay, I understand... No need to get bothered by that."

But, it was true. The whole Tendo family knew it too. Akane had Sayuri and Yuka, two friends she had known since elementary and Ryoga. It could hardly be the case of a friendship with Ryoga, but he was accounted for. Since the incident, Akane was not too keen on the idea of making friends. Her trust was zero to none, but she held some in respect for Sayuri and Yuka. As reluncant as she was, she was confident enough to give even just the slightest bit of trust to Ryoga.

The thing was, Akane simply did not trust people like she used to. The term "friend" is a term of endearment meant only for those who mean something to her.

So the moment the words had left Akane's lips to Ranko, she gave some of her warranted trust over. For some reason, Akane felt at ease with her, but could not place her finger on it. It was almost a vague feeling as if she had reminded her of someone. Someone very dear to her, but for the life of her - Akane could not place that feeling at ease.

Breakfast ended soon and Akane took to reclining outside. She sat near the little pond, underneath the shade provided by the trees. In her lap sat a small print book which she opened slightly and began to read. Her lips parted slowly as she read the story to herself. It was during times like this that she felt most comfortable.

#

Ranma plopped down on his bed, throwing his arms behind his head to create a makeshift pillow as he stared up at the ceiling. He could hear his mother downstairs shuffling around the kitchen preparing dinner.

Dinner.

He had missed lunch. On his little look around, he had found the school he would be attending on Monday, and a park not too far from it. For three hours, Ranma had sat in the park, recollecting the memories he had from when he was a kid. Then, after that, he had gone in search for the object that would confirm his memories. Sure enough, his feet prodded him the way into the small overgrowth of the woods of the park. There he found the tree, and at its base was a crudely engraved "R.S. & A.T."

Ranma had ran his hand over it and remembered when they had done the little engraving. After he had a good recollection of his childhood, he had to wonder - why had he forgotten in the first place? They were such good, strong memories.

He shifted on his bed, now propping his head on his arm, he recalled his life in China. He recalled the little dates he had gone on with numerous girls, his training, and even how he aquired his curse. Stopping at that thought, he sat up.

Akane had asked him to be her friend, and he (then) had agreed. He wondered if it would affect their friendship in anyway, surely if he explained - she would understand. A smile made its way on his face, he would have his old friend back if this all worked out.

#

Ranma cursed as he wrung out his shirt, dripping water over the sidewalk. "Dammit, had to happen on my way to school," he growled.

"Ranko?"

Ranma gulped as he turned around and came face to face with Akane and Ryoga. "Er," Ranma blushed, "Akane! H-hello!" Ryoga crossed his arms and his lips curled into a smirk, "Ranko?" Akane seemed to nod her head a bit and replied, "Hmm, Ranko, I know you alreadt know him, but this is my neighbor Ryoga Hibiki, Ryoga, this is Ranko, she says she knows you."

Ranma eyed Ryoga with an evil glare as he said, "Yeah, nice to see ya, Hibiki." Without skipping a beat, Ryoga replied, "Tch, same to you _Ranko_."

**Author's Notes**

Ok! I have been working on and off on this chapter, and hopefully I left it at a good spot. There should be like...only a few more chapters until this story is complete. And their lengths will be equivalent to this chapter.

I have started back at school already. So my updates will be really lacking.

Revision: 1/16/12

User tuatara pointed out an error in my story, and I fixed it. :) Thanks for catching that. :)


	6. Chapter 6: Finding Out

**Disclaimer: **Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

Story 6: Finding Out

Akane watched the two exchange glares until she gave a small cough to interrupt the tension between them. It was then that Ran(ko) turned to look at Akane and falter when he took note of how she seemed to glow. She had this air of bravado about her that struck him with awe.

While he did that, Akane noted what Ran(ko) was wearing, "Are you on your way to school too?"

Ran(ko) looked down at his drenched state and gulped and nervously replied, "Uh, sorta."

Cocking her head to the left slightly, making her appear just a bit cuter than normal she did and smiled, "What do you mean, silly?"

"Uh," Ran(ko) thought about it, he could not tell her the real reason _now_, it did not seem right. So he racked his brain for an excuse. Ryoga began to get annoyed and interjected with, "Akane-san, time?" Akane gasped slightly and raised her hand up to the air exposing a small wrist watch, "You're right!" She adorned Ran(ko) with a friendly smile, "Come over after classes, we can spar!"

So, with that Akane took off with a wave and a taunting Ryoga who sent Ran(ko) a I-am-watching-you gesture as he matched her stride. Ran(ko) stood dumbfounded for a moment before he realized that he too had to get to class. Cursing under his breath, he made a quick detour to find some hot water and change back to his male form.

#

Akane made in into class on time and Ryoga following behind. He went on to his seat and Akane to hers. Sayuri and Yuka turned to greet their friend as she sat in her seat.

"Morning, Akane!" they chirped.

Meekly, Akane replied, "Good morning guys."

They began to chatter aimlessly about their weekends before the bell finally rang to signal the start of class. Her two friends made their way to their seats in the back. Akane took out her yellow notebook and sat it on her desk. Their homeroom teacher entered with her roll-book and smiled at the class, "I hope you all had a good weekend, class." There was a murmur from the class as a whole as she continued, "And hopefully this will be a good week as today we are welcoming a new student. He was recently transferred from his school in China," the teacher signaled to the door and a raven-haired boy entered the room, "Saotome, Ranma."

The girls in the room began to giggle wildly as Ranma entered the room. The boys grunted in a mix of intrigue and jealousy of the attention the new kid got from the girls. All the while this was happening, Akane had rested her head on her propped hand and gazed out the window. The chatter in the room was getting a little loud, but she ignored it.

A sigh left her lips as her eyes glanced up to see the new student. The all too familiar feeling of being stared at began to creep up her spine as the new face looked at her with soft eyes. Turning her attention away, she opened her notebook and wrote down the date.

"Alright, settle down class," the teacher chuckled as she opened up her book and looked at the seating arrangement. Her eyes scanned the seating chart and groaned internally. The only open seat was beside Akane, but, like the rest of Furikan high's population, she knew of Akane's past experience with males as her seatmates. But, she had just adjusted the seating two weeks ago - so she was faced with a dilemma.

"Tendo-san, please raise your hand," the teacher said.

The class grew silent as they watched their teacher seat the new student next to Akane. A small murmur began to buzz. "Saotome, please take the seat next to Tendo-san."

Ranma smiled to himself as he nodded and took the empty seat. He shot a quick glance over to Akane who seemed to be ignoring him and boring herself into her notebook. The teacher had begun lecture and the class stopped their murmurs and was replaced by the scratching sounds of pencils against paper. Ranma raised an eyebrow at Akane as he turned his head to the front of the room.

She acted different.

Then again, he reminded himself, he had first met her (after all these years) as a girl and under different circumstances. He began to think of a reason why she would act like that. Maybe Akane was shy after all these years? Probably have a hard time with the opposite sex? Hard-to-get? He noted that the other people around her had been girls and the boys were on the other side of the room.

He thought to himself more along the lines of why might that be the case? Akane filled out nicely, he noted as he caught himself staring at her lips as she mouthed the words as she wrote them down. The heart in his chest began to pulsate wildly and his face flushed hard as he turned his attention away – why did she have such a pull on him?

#

Akane narrowed her eyes as she wrote down the class notes. She could feel the eyes from the new student on her and it made her nervous. Her hand began to shake slightly as she wrote, making her calligraphy a bit shaky. From the corner of her eye, she saw him blush and turn away. She felt disgust in the pit of her stomach as she could only imagine what he could be thinking.

She only hoped he was not thinking of her like that.

#

When the lunch bell rang, Ranma was surrounded by a bunch of giggling girls asking about his espionage in China. While Ranma entertained them with short answers, he tried to spot out Akane. He wanted to talk to her. He saw her still sitting at her desk with a bento sitting on top of her desk. Two girls had pulled in the surrounding desks towards her and sat next to her, talking wildly.

Akane seemed to interact a bit there, with a smile thrown here and there. Ranma watched with interest as a boy approached the group. The two girls stopped their talking and their faces turned grave as the boy seemed to talk to Akane.

He had a body language that Ranma did not like.

He saw her grow rigid as he put a hand on her shoulder and her two friends pushed out of their seats and stood up abruptly – their chairs scrapping against the floor. Akane's eyes had grown wide and she took the hand and clutched it with her own and flipped the poor boy – from a _sitting_ position!

The boy landed with a huge thump onto the floor and groaned. Akane breathed in and out in a fast fashion and Ryoga had raced across the room. Ranma noted that Ryoga did not dare approach Akane, but rather talk to her from a safe distance. However, the two girls got closer and even gave her a small hug and started to whisper something in her ears and Akane calmed down.

He watched Akane mutter an apology and walk out of the room.

A couple of boys went over to their fallen comrade with mixed conversations as they helped him up.

"Why'd you go and touch her? You know she was gonna flip," one classmate said.

"Serves you right, what makes you think you can just ask Akane out like that," another said.

"Man, she's cute when she gets angry, but I wouldn't want to be on that end of her emotions," said one more.

Ranma's curiosity began to grow. His ears perked up as he continued to listen in to the boys' conversation therefore shutting himself off from the chatter of the girls who seemed so keen on talking with him.

And that caused him to say, "What do they mean?"

The girls became silent, heck, the class went silent.

Ranma felt the atmosphere in the room change and he turned around to be faced with girls' who had a sort of trepidation among them. The boys seemed to carry the same look.

"I don't think it's our business to say," the girl who was sitting next to Akane said, "It's more-or-less a personal thing, and a newcomer like you wouldn't know. But just for your sake, and Akane's," she looked around, "It's best _you_ don't try to talk to her."

#

The girls' words kept replaying in his mind throughout the whole day. At the end of school, he found himself standing at the gates. He then saw Ryoga escorting Akane out of the front doors and headed towards him. They were not talking, and as they passed, Ryoga shot him a menacing look.

Ranma furrowed his brow as he watched their retreating backs disappear in the direction of the Tendo household. It was then he realized Akane had invited him, _er_, Ranko over. He decided to take advantage of that and scurried to find a public restroom and splash himself with water.

It was because of that he found himself running to Akane's house in his girl form. He made it to their front door and hesitantly announced his presence. The girl whom Akane had addressed Nabiki had answered. She looked at Ran(ko), surveying her demeanor before she asked, "Who are you?"

"I'm -" Ran(ko) started but was interupted by a familiar voice behind Nabiki call out his name, "Oh! You did make it, Ranko!"

Nabiki turned to look at her sister come up behind her and acknowledge the red head. With that, Nabiki took it as an alright and shrugged her shoulders leaving the two girls to their own accord.

"Y-yeah, can't put down an invitation to spar, y'know?" he mustered up.

He noticed her attire, she had retired her uniform and was donned in an oversized black t-shirt that hung loosely around her knees as well as white sweat pants that had black strips along the sides. She looked blocky as the clothes hid her form.

Akane's face lit up, "Wonderful! I'll change into my gi and we can spar, is that okay?" Ran(ko) nodded as she ushered him towards the dojo as she ran upstairs to change. On his way, he met up with Kasumi who was bringing in the laundry.

"Why, nice to see you again, Ranko," she said behind the stack of neatly folded clothes as she walked by, "Will you be staying for dinner?"

Ran(ko) thought for a moment and decided to take her up on that offer, he was starving! With that, Kasumi smiled and gave a soft nod as she went inside. Ran(ko) found himself sitting cross-legged on the dojo floor when Akane came.

He stood up and presented her with the formal bow before they broke out in an all out spar. Sweat beaded down the side of his face as he launched fist after fist and held up his arms in defense. At the start of the match he was on the offense, but not too soon after he found himself on the defense.

They fought for a good hour before it was called a draw and the two tired teenagers plopped themselves on the floor to rest.

"You're really good!" Ran(ko) exclaimed as he evened out his breath.

"Thanks! You're just as good," Akane said in-between her breaths, "You could probably outmatch my teacher."

Ran(ko) smiled at that comment and looked fondly at the girl beside him. She had closed her eyes and took to small breaths through her mouth. His heart dropped as he watched the slow rhythm of the rise and fall of her chest. Oh, he blushed alright. Turning his head away before she would catch him and ruin any chance of a friendship with her he randomly asked, "Do you believe in magic?"

Akane's eyes did not open as she let out a soft grunt, "No, I believe in truth. Magic covers up the lies."

#

For two weeks, Ranma made it part of his schedule to go over and soar and have the occasional dinner with Akane, as _Ranko_. After their talk in the dojo that one day, he found it hard to tell her the real truth.

At school, he kept his distance, but kept a close eye on her where ever she went. But after school hours, he found himself becoming really good friends with Akane. True, it was dishonest but, he seemed to find no fault in it.

He found out all her interests all over again, her hobbies and dreamz. It was the afternoon after the incident, as it was come to know by, that he found out just what happened to his friend.

He was just leaving the school grounds when he caught Akane walking towards the exit. For the first time, Ryoga was not with her. If memories served right, she mentioned that he had went on a family trip for a funeral of a close family friend. With wary eyes, he watched a group of men follow her after she left the school gates.

Not that far behind her, he watched them say lewd comments to her, going as far as asking other perverted questions - simply put, harassing her.

Then, it was the comment, "Come on, you ain't so pure as you look, what's another under your belt?"

Ranma saw her demeanor change from ignoring to full on rage as she turned to the one who said it. The other boys hooted, and Ranma saw Akane's eyes begin to tear up.

"Shut up, you bastard," she said in a harsh whisper.

The boys ooh-ed and looked at the "leader" mock her with her words and grabbed her shoulders. Akane's eyes grew wide and Ranma saw her gaze glaze over and anger rise. She struggled against him, using her momentum to push herself against his hold, and rise from the ground to kick him full in the chest.

With that, Ranma saw the boys start to gang up on her and Akane fought hard against them, but three boys on one girl was not a fair fight. And quite honestly, Ranma could not take it anymore as he revealed himself from his hiding and jumped in. He blindly attacked the boys and saw Akane fall to her knees, with her hands on her head as she tried to even her breathing.

Getting their just desserts, the group had disbanded and fled the scene. Ranma did not know what he was thinking, all rational thought left his mind as he could not bear to see her in that state. His heart ached, and he found himself kneeling down on the ground and holding her.

Akane froze and looked up to see the new student hugging her. Her first instinct was to deliver a whopping blow but the words that left his lips next caused her tear up and let them fall down her cheeks.

Ranma cradled the petit girl in his arms as he whispered over and over again, "It's gonna be ok, I won't let anyone hurt you _Akachan_."

#

He brought her home for the first time in his male form since he met his childhood friend. He sat at the family table with Akane as Kasumi served tea.

"Ah, Ranma, I remember you like it was yesterday," Kasumi commented, but the words sounded practiced.

He just nodded as he kept looking at Akane. He was nervous. Akane sat with her head held low, "Thanks." His lips curled into a gentle smile, "No prob-"

"Sorry I didn't recognize you when you transferred in, and..." she folded her hands over one another, "Sorry if I ignored you in anyway."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up over that," he said as he watched her raise her head and stare up at him with sadness but donned a bright smile, "I might not look or act like it, but I really am glad to see you again, Ranma."

For some reason he felt a bit of sadness shoot through him when she said his name with a more formal honorific, but quickly pushed that aside as he understood where she was coming from. A giggle interuppted his train of thought and he looked up to see Akane say, "I coulda swore I told you I didn't like to be called Akachan..."

He couldn't help but smile as he found himself reaching out and hold her face in his hand. He felt her stiffen but she eased into the hold and she held her breath, "Ranma-kun," she whispered as she then moved from her spot causing the table to move and clang, bringing a concerned Kasumi back into the room only to be greeted by a young couple in an endearing embrace. She stopped in her tracks with a small smile on her face as she slowly slipped her way out.

Ranma found himself angry that he did not keep in contact with the girl in his arms. Who cared whose "turn" it was to call...had he only called to ask why then maybe this would have been different.

He soon found out just how different.

#

"What did that guy mean back there?" he found humself asking Akane as they sat on the open patio eating the snacks Kasumi prepared.

Mid-bite, Akane stopped and just stared forward. It was silent for a moment, the only sound was the occasional splash from the koi in the pond. He thought he crossed the line, but was surprised by her words.

"He meant what he said in the very literal sense, I'm not _pure_, I was raped a few years back," she said in such a small voice, "So, I'm just a used piece of shit."

"No!" Ranma found himself almost yellung. Akane was taken back by his outburst but watched him go on, "You aren't! Don't say that about yourself," he turned to fully face her and caught her gaze, "You're too special."

A weak smile its way to her lips, "You know," she wiped away the tears that fell, "You remind me so much of my new friend, Ranko."

**Author's Note:**

Alright, here is the next installment of this series. Hopefully it will be enough to tide you over until the next chapter that will reveal more about Ranma and Akane as well as their developing relationship with one another. I have been writing this inbetween my classes and for a few minutes before bed. :)


	7. Chapter 7: Revealed

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 7: Revealed

Ranma choked on his food and his high hopes faltered. He had forgotten that little fact and almost spilled his guts when he saw her smile a bit more, "Silly, huh?"

He gave her a small smile, "Yeah..."

They sat together for a while in silent until a set of footsteps made themselves clear and loud and an enraged Nabiki charged into the room. She looked incredulous as she scanned the room and fell to her knees as she threw her arms around Akane, "God, Akane, are you alright? Did they hurt you? Oh, there's going to be hell to pay when I get my hands on their necks!"

Ranma watched with earnest the display of affection the older Tendo had for her sister. Akane just nodded her head, "I'm fine, Nabiki, er," she slowly pushed her sister off and she motioned towards Ranma, "Ne, Ranma-kun had helped me out, I kinda panicked out there..."

Nabiki reluctantly let go and turned to face Ranma, a smirk making itself evident on her lips, "Didn't I tell you to stay away from my sister, lover boy?"

Ranma made the move for a rebuttal, but Akane beat him to it, "Nabiki! I said he helped me, it's okay..." The way she had said it made Nabiki's glare soften and allowed her to recollect herself. She stood up and dusted the imaginary dust off her jumper, "Alright, well, I have some unattended business that needs taken care of," she coolly turned to Ranma, "So, you guys carry on."

On that note, she made her way out bumping into Kasumi and they engaged in idle talk before dispatching at the foot of the stairs. Akane let out a sigh and made the move to get up, "Sorry about that, Nabiki's gotten a little protective since she left high school."

Ranma shook his head and said it was no problem and also made the move to stand up. It was then he noticed how much smaller she was to him, how his body shadowed over hers, and just how fragile she looked. But, from the spars he knew it was a different story than what she led on. "Maybe you can meet Ranko, she usually comes around on days like this," Akane finally said while peering out around the patio, "I'd really like you to meet her," she added softly. "Akane-" Ranma started out to say but stopped when he saw how much Akane seemed to be keen on waiting on her friend.

"I-I've got to go," he stammered, "I'll see you at school?"

A small smile spread across her face, "Yes, that'd be nice." Nodding, he made his exit.

For a while, Ranma stood at the end of the block, contemplating all the new information he seemed to have acquired. He clenched his fists as he realized, despite her physical manners, Akane (mentally) could not trust him. He knew it must be true, he had noted her distance with the male types. His eyebrows knitted together, he chastised himself for not picking up on this earlier. It all made sense now.

But, how could he have ever known?

And...it dawned on him, would she ever trust him, again?

She will not if this Ranko charade he created continues, he knows that he will just ruin any trust she had with him to begin with. And, oh, any trust she had in Ranko. He would be stealing it away. He felt his heart beat slowly as a cold sweat started to form at the base of his neck... He was not any better than the men who took her innocence away.

Innocence.

Something in his mind began to go haywire. Was it is his big male ego pride coming into play? He began to get all hot and bothered about that, that _bastard_ took away something that was his!

Wait, what does that mean?

Ranma froze and shook his head; he calmed his mind and began to breathe slowly: in, out, in, out. After he cooled off, he stood up and looked over his shoulder to see the dojo sign and just imagined him and Akane under the sign again.

#

_"There," Ranma said as he put the makeshift flower crown on her little head. She giggled as he moved down and their nose touched, pulling away he smiled, "You're perfect." Akane giggled as she pulled away and began to run from him, "Catch me if ya can!" _

_A big grin made its way across his face as he chased after her and playfully tackled her to the ground and they rolled around laughing until they ended up outside the dojo gates and under the sign where they stopped their antics and stared at each other._

_Ranma smiled down at the girl and leaned down to kiss her softly on the lips while laughing, "Haha! Now you got the cooties, nya nya~!" Akane contorted her face and giggled as she pushed him off and ran the back of her hand across her mouth feigning disgust, "Gross Ranma-kun!"_

_He shrugged as he turned away and began to run back to the house, "Come on, Akachan, let's go inside and play!"_

#

He smiled as his hand reached up to touch his lips gently. It was then he wanted nothing more than to feel her lips against his.

Shaking his head from those thoughts, he was brought out of his hallucinations by a splash of water from the sprinkler in the yard over turning on, changing him to a female. He swore and shook the excess water off only to stop in his tracks to see a blue haired girl standing beside him doing the same.

"Ah, Mister Mako's stupid sprinkler," Akane said as she stopped and looked to see Ranma.

"Ranko?" she exclaimed happily as she brought her arm up to wipe the water on her blouse off, "Were you on the way to my house?" Ranko blinked as his eyes scoured Akane's form, she had gotten even more drenched than he did, and it showed. Her once loose clothes now clung to her body.

Her smile turned into a frown as she took in her current predicament and softly exclaimed, "I need to change."

Not knowing what else to do, Ranma nodded his head. Akane turned to look at him, "Hn, Ranko?" Snapping out of his daze, Ranma stuttered, "Ah, I was on my over to spar with you, but you look like you're busy."

"Nah," Akane shrugged as she crossed her arms in front of her drenched blouse to hide her chest, "Kasumi asked me to go pick her up some soy sauce for dinner, is all. But that'll have to wait now that I'm soaked."

"Wait," Ranma said as he unclasped his red shirt and offered it out to her, "At least put this on; it's drier than what you have on."

Akane stares at Ranko for a moment, her eyes narrowing just slightly as something in the back of her mind itched the walls of her brain. For some reason, Ranko sparked some sort of familiarity and Akane could not, for the life of her, put her finger on it.

"Thanks Ranko," she said as she took the shirt and pulled it on. It was then she noticed just how large the shirt was, and quietly wondered why her petite friend had worn such large clothes. And for an instant, Akane could have been imagining things, but wasn't Ranma wearing the same style? "I need to go and change," Akane said turning around, facing the direction of the house, but Ranma stopped her.

"Hey, I'll go get the soy sauce, you head home." he said.

"It'll be fine," Akane said, "I won't be long, thank you though."

A smile graced Akane's features, causing Ranma to blush, "Ah, uhm...well," he stumbles over his words, this caused Akane to giggle into her open palm, "Oh, come on Ranko. Come along with me, and have dinner with us?"

Ranma could only nod.

#

After the awkward afternoon, Ranma found himself on his bed, looking up at his ceiling, fidgeting. After taking all he could take, he sat up and went downstairs where his parents were watching a program on the TV.

"Mom, do you have anything from when we used to live here? Albums or something?" he asked.

His mother poked her head from behind the couch and smiled, "Oh, dear, yes actually - in the kitchen in the third cupboard are a few, the red ones are from when we lived in Nerima -" but the last of her sentence went unheard as Ranma dashed into the kitchen to obtain them. Sure enough, they were there. He bundled them up in his arms and made his way back to his room. His actions did not go unnoticed by his parents as they commented on how it must be something to do with teenagers now-a-days.

Carefully putting the albums on his bed, Ranma sat cross-legged as he opened one. He was rewarded with a picture of him and Akane holding hands and waving to the camera with their free arms. Flipping through the albums, he found himself remembering each memory as each photo came and passed. It was in the last album, the one that remained unfinished, that a photo struck his heart so. It was different, he could tell, as he removed the picture out of its protected covering and on the back in his mother's delicate scrawl etched the words: _the day Ranma said good-bye to Akachan._

Why the tears came, Ranma did not understand as he put the picture back and closed the old book. He leaned against the wall his bed stood next to and closed his eyes. Fatigued rushed over him as he fell asleep muttering, "Akachan..."

#

On the following school day, Akane found Ranma standing near the gates of the school. He looked like he was anticipating something, or some_one,_ as he looked around with his antsy eyes. When they fell upon Akane's, the teenager's world both stopped on a pivot as Ranma approached her hesitantly as he raised one arm to wave, "Ah, mornin' Aka-Akane."

"Morning, Ranma," Akane said quietly as she heard Ryoga come up behind her, grumbling about rocks and how stupid they were.

The silence between the two was disrupted by a retort by Ryoga, "What do you want, Saotome?"

Ranma clenched his fist as he absentmindedly reminded himself that Ryoga was just protecting Akane, but the way he voiced his words made Ranma a bit pissed off. "Nothin' but the same thing you want, Hibiki," Ranma's double meaning statement did not go unnoticed by Ryoga as he began to retort, but Ranma ever-so-casually finished it off with, "To wish _Akachan _a good morning." The two boys glared at each other for some time before Akane let out a soft cough to indicate her presence as she spoke up, "I'm going to class now," and that she did as she left the two boys there, following after her two friends who beckoned her over when they arrived on the school grounds.

"You think you can waltz back into Akane' life like this, she doesn't need you," Ryoga said.

"What, you think she needs someone like you?" Ranma retorted angrily ad he fell into a fighting stance before Ryoga, "Ever since we were kids, you always tried to take the things I had and claim it for yourself. But, you never got over the fact that Akane liked me better then."

"We were kids back then," Ryoga rebutted as he too fell into an angry stance, his anger rising, "And it was only because you were such a petty kid, always chasing away any guy friends Akane had, always insisting that she should play with her _best _friend as you had said. So sad Ranma, and to think," he spat, "You may have been already in love with her then. But, that' the past - you weren't here for her when she needed someone."

Ranma cringed as he knew what Ryoga implied, how dare he use that in this situation? Sure, if his family had not moved, but...he stopped his thoughts as he recalled that stupid little tidbit that he had not called to check in on her.

But, she did not call him.

Ranma retracted his stance as his mind conflicted with these thoughts. Ryoga watched with careful eyes as he too withdrew from his stance, "Just watch yourself, Saotome. I promised Akane I wouldn't let anyone hurt her, even if she rejected me, I will always be her friend, and I'll always love her. I'll always protect her," Ranma was still silent as he heard Ryoga say, "And that means telling her the truth about you, _Ranko_."

That made Ranma snapped his head towards Ryoga, he gritted his teeth, "Don't you dare." Ryoga sneered, "Some friend you are, not even telling her about your little front there, how dare you lead her on like that? She may be strong, but her walls are thin, Saotome, and what am I to do? I can't just stand around watching you go on like that, Akane's too good of a person to be fooled like that. She was hurt once, so badly hurt, that it killed me to see her like that. You're just using her in your sick little game..."

"Damn you," Ranma simply replied, he hotly walked up to Ryoga and grabbed his shirt, hoisting him up in the air as his eyes burned with anger, "You go on about that, and you make it sound like I'm the worst scum in the world, well, damn it, you don't know the start of it all. You don't think it kills me every time I end up as my female self and have to confront her? You don't know the kind of pain I go through when

I see that she trusts me in that form, b-but knowing, knowing that she hates men..." He began to tremble as he threw Ryoga to the ground as the bell behind him indicated class was to start soon, "I don't want to take away that friend."

He turned around and made his way to the school whole Ryoga gathered himself up and followed behind him.

In the classroom, Akane watched Ryoga and Ranma enter. Her eyes latched onto Ranma's form for a moment before she turned her attention back to the lesson at hand.

Ranma grunted slightly as he sat down and quickly looked over at Akane. He had seen the tail end of her glance before she faced forward. Slightly blushing, he leaned his head into his palm and slowly began to rethink of the conversation he had with Ryoga. It had hit a moral sore spot as he thought hard about it.

He was right.

But, Ranma concluded, he was right too - in some manner.

While he was lost in his thoughts, he never realized that it was soon lunch. Sitting up, he scanned the room and found that Ryoga was seated next to a bunch of rowdy guys, Akane's usual lunch mates bundled up by the window, but Akane was nowhere to be seen. He got up from his seat, he was determined to go and find her. The restlessness in his heart urged him to.

As he walked around the campus, he got worried. For some reason, he felt unease. As he rounded the corner he collided with a small figure that he instantly wrapped his arms around the figure and brought himself towards the impact. As they landed, he opened his eyes only to be facing eye-to-eye with Akane.

His face flushed. "Ranma-kun," she whispered as she pulled herself off of him, a pink hue gracing itself across her cheeks, "Sorry, I should have watched where I was going." Ranma scrambled up and quickly replied, "No, it was mine. I was in such a rush to find-" he stopped and wondered if he should finish that sentence.

"Find what?" she asked as her eyes trailed up to his. That undid him as he reached out for her and took hold of her shoulders. She froze, but quickly became lax as he leaned down and ever so carefully whispered in her ear, "You."

Akane stood still for a moment as she tried to process what was happening to her in that instance and was regarded with Ranma pulling back and then pulling her towards him as he hugged her. Her arms stood still at her side until he nervously brought then up and returned the embrace.

The bell had ringed, but the two teenagers stayed rooted to their spot. For all they cared, they were the only ones in the world in that moment. That is, until Ranma whispered in her ear, "Please don't hate me, Akane."

**Author's Note:**  
>Heeey guys, look at me, updating finally :) Sorry about that, but school of course came first. I find time on Sunday afternoon's the best to write. As you can see, I now have <em><strong>three <strong>_on-going chapter stories now... Silly me, getting ahead of myself there. _With the Band _has already a good chunk of its next chapter written and the possible update is soon. :)

If you started my new _Always_ story, I have the idea of the next chapter dotted down on paper, but I haven't gotten to writing it. Well, aside from that, enjoy this chapter, as this story is soon done, looking at three or four more chapters.


	8. Chapter 8: Words and Promises

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love  
>by pahlee<p>

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 8: Words and Promises

"Ranma?" she whispered as he held her in his arms.

"Please," he muttered as he pressed her closer to him, "Don't ever hate me."

"Why would I hate you?" she asked quietly as she stood there with him and felt him let go and run his hand through her hair. He bit his lower lip as he looked down and into her milky brown eyes. The two teenagers were frozen in that moment of time only to be broken when Ranma decided to lean in closer to her face.

Akane felt herself tense up as she saw what Ranma was doing. Her heart began to race as his face got closer and closer until, she used both of her arms and yielded him away from her.

Ranma opened his eyes to be surprised with the sight that Akane was pushing him away. She stood in front of him with her arms stretched out and her face turned away.

"No," she whispered, "I-I can't, Ranma."

His gaze softened as he looked at the girl in front of him, his heart overwhelmed with confliction emotions as he braced himself, "Sorry, I crossed a line."

There was a silence between them.

"A-are we still friends?" he meekly asked.

#

Akane turned to him, her eyes starting to glaze over as her heart beat erratically in her chest. She could lie to herself and say she did not want that kiss, but she knew herself well enough that it would almost like the day she was raped.

She told herself, day after day, that it never happened. It was just a horrible dream she has not woken up from yet. But, she learned that it was a lie, and she had to face it.

But this, this scene that was happening to her with Ranma back in her life, all the bottled up emotions she felt when he was around, or when he _was not_ around, confused her greatly. But, she did not want to hurt him or herself for that matter.

Yet, the moment those words left his lips, she found herself shutting down entirely and fell to her knees, she brought her arms up to cover her face, her sleeves falling down her slender arms to reveal the light discoloration from her bruises from years past.

"Always." she said through her sobs.

#

Ranma found himself on the ground, his arms around her as she cried. He found himself biting back the tears that threatened to make an appearance. The memories flooded his mind as he held her.

"Shh, now, Akachan, shh," he soothed her, his hand rubbing her back.

He did not intend to say it, but they left his lips regardless.

"I think I'm in love with you."

#

Akane stifled her sobs as she looked up to face his steel blue eyes as she utterly and desperately said, "I'm not worth loving, Ranma. I don't deserve your love."

He furrowed his brow as he stared at her and said, "Don't say that..."

"But, i-it's true," she said but soon found herself being lifted up and in Ranma's arms. He whispered, "Let us go somewhere else, I hear people approaching."

Leaving the school grounds, he found himself bringing Akane to the park where they had shared so many memories from their childhood. They sat under a tree while Akane caught her breath.

"Ranma," she said as she looked at him only to be greeted with his lips crushing against hers in a heated passion. Her eyes grew wide as she felt herself go rigid, but for other reasons. Her body slowly melted against his and she found herself responding to his kiss. However, her brain said otherwise.

Ranma withdrew from their kiss when he felt a streak of water pass his cheek and he opened his eyes to see Akane crying.

"What's wrong?" he said in a worried tone as he took this time to look her over.

"This isn't right, we s-shouldn't be doing this," she replied.

He stroked her face with his hand, guiding her to look at him, "I know this is all too sudden, but, I want to be there for you."

"Ranma..." she whispered.

"Can't you trust me?" he asked worriedly.

"It's not that I can't trust you...it's just that I don't think I can trust myself. Ranma, things have changed, I've changed." she explained as she looked at him, reaching up to hold his hand in hers and lowering it down to their sides, "I want to trust myself to...to get over the past but, I can't offer you anything but my friendship."

"What about your love?"

"We're only eighteen, Ranma... Love isn't a concept that we can grasp."

"Listen to yourself," Ranma snapped as he leaned closer to her, "Do you know how ridiculous you sound?"

Akane bit her lower lip, "Ranma...please," her eyes showed her true intentions but she did not act on them as she lowered her gaze only to be intercepted by Ranma once again stealing a kiss from her, but this time a short chaste one.

"Let me prove you're worth everything and more," he said as he held her face in his hands, "Run away with me."

Her eyes grew wide, "Wha-?" He stood up, bringing her up with him. He glanced upwards and indicated that he wanted to go into the masses of the tree. Akane stared at him in disbelief as he made his way up and lowered half his body down to offer his arm to help her up. She took it and he hoisted her onto the branch.

She looked with bright eyes at the river and her eyes started to cloud with tears.

"I remember..." she said in a hushed tone, "A memory so similar to this."

Ranma sat there, watching her talk before he answered, "It was ten years ago, right here, when I asked if you'd marry me, and you said yes. And that we will always be friends, best friends."

"Yes!" she exclaimed as she made her way to look at him with shining eyes, but soon her expression soon faltered as she looked away and silently whispered, "Why are you doing this?"

He felt his arm wrap around her waist, pulling her close to him, "Run away with me and I'll tell you everything."

#

"You teacher called and said you never came back from lunch, are you okay?" Kasumi asked as Akane made her way back home.

"Yes, sorry, uh, something came up," she lied.

Kasumi watched her sister with a wary eye as she made her way to her bedroom. Outside, the clouds started to darken and roll with thunder. And then there was Ranma who was making his way over to the Tendo's to eat dinner. Akane told him to come, and afterwards give him her answer. He neared the front gates only to knock and be greeted with a sudden burst of rain, triggering his curse. He mumbled an obscenity and tried to leave, but too late, when the door opened to reveal Kasumi there with a soft smile. "Ah, Ranko, are you here to see Akane?"

Ranma faced Kasumi and stuttered, he tried to think of something. This was not his intentions and all of it got shot down to hell when Akane came down the stairs wearing something he never thought he would ever get to see. A normal white tank top and moderate black shorts that still showed the beautiful form of her shapely legs. He gulped as he saw her catch a glimpse of him and her eyes shined, "Ranko!"

Akane seemed to glow and it surprised Ranma. Akane bowed and escorted her in as Kasumi moved out of the way to finish preparing dinner. As Akane shut the front door behind her, she took Ranko's arm and tugged her towards her room, smiling over her shoulder she said to her friend, "I've got to tell you something, spectacular!"

Ranma blinked as he found himself sitting on his friends' bed as Akane seemed to jump around. He gulped as he saw her breasts rise and fall as she jumped enthusiastically. It was quite different from her attitude earlier in the day. So, he played along...

"So...?"

"I think I'm in love!" she chirped as she fell to the ground with excitement. Ranma's eyes grew wide. "H-he said he might be in love with me too," she said in a secretive tone and turned over onto her side and rested her arm across her stomach, "But...I didn't tell him that."

"W-why?" Ranma asked.

Akane sat up and curled her knees toward her, "Can you keep a secret?"

Ranma shook his head and watched as Akane rise and sit next to him, her hands folding over in her lap. "H-he wants me to run away with him." Ranma nodded as he watched her gaze across the room, falling on a picture that stood framed on the wall. Upon further investigation, he saw that it was a picture of him and her when they were about eight or nine in their elementary school uniform and smiling at one another.

That brought a smile to his face and then noticed Akane sighing, "But...I-I don't know, oh Ranko. I-I had this little crush on him when we were ten, but we were kids back then, oh gosh," she buried her face in her hands, "I never stopped thinking of him, I-I'd always anticipated our little chats a-and then," her voice grew solemn, "_it _happened. I felt so alone, so embarrassed that I had let it happened. I never called to tell him, but...he never called either. So, I just assumed he forgot about me. But, god, Ranko," her tears started again as she faced her friend, "I felt so dirty, so ... defiled. I had always dreamt that I would keep myself for the one I love, b-but..."

Ranma felt his heart soar from her confession, but part of him chastised himself for using her trust in this friendship to find out about this, and that it compromised her honor. But, he could not find himself to stopping as he played along as the friend she trusted enough to confide in these secrets that holed up in the petite martial artist.

He put his hand on her shoulder, "Hey, it's going to be okay."

Sniffing, Akane turned to Ranma, "Thanks Ranko, you're a great friend, ne," she perked up instantly and blushed, "He's coming over for dinner; you should stay and meet him?"

"Oh, no," Ranma stated getting up- making his mind up on the spot, "I can't, I, uh, really came by to tell you I'm moving, tonight."

"What?" Akane questioned, jumping up in shock, "Tonight?"

"Y-yeah," Ranma said, as he tried to calculate the pros and cons of his words now, "I know, such short notice, but uhm, I couldn't tell ya earlier."

"If I had known, we could have had a girls' day, Ranko," Akane said sadly, "And you could have met Ranma-kun..."

"Hey," Ranma said moving towards her, "It'll be okay, but words of advice, if this guy makes you happy, I say go for it."

"Oh, Ranko, you've been a great friend," Akane said as she moved closer and actually hugged the smaller framed girl, "Please write?"

"Yeah, anything for you," Ranma said in a low whisper she knew Akane would miss and returned the hug. After hastily writing her address on a piece of stationary paper and hugging Ranko, Ranma left the Tendo house.

He left, going home to change back and grab an umbrella. When he came crashing through the door, he had only one thought left:

_Ranko is no longer a part of her life._

_She's gone. _

He changed and grabbed an umbrella as he sprinted back to Akane's. He had to change this now. He had to make Akane understand what she means to him.

And that was a month ago.

#

Ranma had been careful not to be around water when he was around Akane; his _Ranko _charade never came into play unless he wrote those short letters to Akane. Ryoga had made it his priority to be next to Akane since then, and only the words Akane gave him that night gave him hope.

"Let's talk about this after graduation."

So, there he was studying for an exam in the school's library with Akane and Ryoga. Ranma bit the end of his pen cap and gnawed at it for a while until he saw Ryoga cast him a nasty look. Akane seemed oblivious as her pencil flew across the paper.

"Hey, Akane?" Ranma inquired, ignoring Ryoga's antics altogether, "Can you explain this problem to me?"

Akane broke her concentration to glance up at Ranma and spot his confusion for the problem. Slowly, the ends of her lips curled into a smile as she moved over closer to show the steps of the equation to Ranma. Ranma smirked as he felt Ryoga stare daggers at him as Akane pointed out the parts of the problem in simpler terms.

"Hmm," Ranma pretended to be fascinated, "I see, mm, thanks, Akane."

"You're welcome, but you might want to remember those steps, it's going to be on the final." Akane chided as she went back to her own work.

Ranma smirked as he jotted down some numbers and returned the glare that Ryoga shot at him. Akane let out a tired sigh as she closed her booklet and fell back in her seat. "Ahh, this exam is going to be killer."

"Yeah," Ryoga agreed as he finished writing, "But you'll do fine. Numbskull over there, on the other hand," Ryoga pointed out to Ranma, "Might not do so well."

"Hey!" Ranma shot back as he hurdled an eraser at him, "I can hear you!"

Akane sat forward and her eyes softened as she looked at Ranma, "He's right, y'know. You've been struggling in this subject for a while now..."

"Calculus is so pointless," Ranma groaned as he abandoned his pencil and rested his arms behind his back, "Let's stop studyin', and let me treat you to some ice-cream, 'kane."

Akane blushed as she folded her hands on her lap. Ryoga knitted his eyebrows together and stared down Ranma. "Ne, Ranma..." Akane whispered, "You bought me lunch..."

"Eh, it's no problem, so whaddaya say," he leaned forward, closing his space between them, "It's a date?"

Ryoga sat up, making the books shift and cause a ruckus. They turned to look at him and Akane blushed furiously, "Uh, no, not today? We really got to study," she tried to reason.

"Do what you want!" Ryoga seemed to force himself to say, biting back the pang of jealousy, "I-I have after school club meetings to attend." He gathered his things and made his way to leave. Akane called out to him, "Ryoga!" But he stormed off. Akane let out a sigh and turned to Ranma who sat cheekily in his spot.

"Why must you guys always fight?" she asked hotly.

Ranma shrugged as he threw a glance at her, "Dunno, besides, he started that one." He chuckled, "Now that he's gone..." he made his way closer, "You wanna go on that date?"

Akane's checks flushed as she stammered her shy reply, only to be granted by Ranma's soft caress on her cheeks, "Just nod your head..."

She blinked and felt her breath catch as he leaned in even closer, his breath on hers, "Or say the words..."

Her eyes fluttered shut and she felt herself leaning towards him. Ranma inwardly smiled to himself as he gave her a light kiss that made his heart literally melt from the warmth she provided him. He sought out her hand and was rewarded with her small hand clasping his. Ranma hoisted her up from her seat and they stood, toe-to-toe for a moment before he knelt down to her level and kissed her again. As he drew away, he lightly whispered, "Is that a yes?"

Akane blinked as she smiled up at him, "Ranma..."

He grabbed her bag and things, slung it over his shoulder as he grabbed her wrist, laughing, "Come on, humor me." She gave him a small smile as her cheeks turned a light shade of pink, "Alright, alright...but afterwards we need to go talk to Ryoga. He really seemed ticked, Ranma."

"Pft," Ranma reasoned, and added, "Sure he'll want to see us after his meetings, he'll be tired no doubt?"

Akane raised an eyebrow, "We will go see him, he's our..." she hesitated for a moment as her eyes went downcast, "...friend."

Ranma gave a nonchalant shrug as he clasped his hand around hers, lacing their fingers together, "Only because you asked."

"Thank you."

#

Ranma rubbed his clenched fist as Akane tried to tend to it. She hissed as she observed his hand in hers, "You didn't have to go and punch the guy."

"He deserved it," Ranma replied as he casted a glance towards his right where the fight occurred. "What about you, are you okay?"

Akane smirked up at him as she put a small band aid on his wrist, "I'm fine, mister macho, I can take care of myself."

Ranma did not answer as he composed himself and looked at Akane. Her uniform was a bit astray, her hair a mess, but she looked fine. His eyes scanned her form and stopped when he saw the hairline cut on her exposed upper arm. He reached out and held her arm in his hand, engulfing it in his hold. He carefully watched himself as he saw just how small Akane is.

"You got cut," he whispered.

"Eh?" Akane said as she looked where Ranma was holding, "Oh, I guess I didn't feel that...but its okay, it doesn't hurt. Forget about it," she gently pushed his hand off, "I've felt worse."

The underlying message did not go pass Ranma as he watched her eyes change, their hues depicting her real feelings. "Hey, enough of that," Ranma tried to steer the conversation to another topic as he hoisted their things on his shoulder once more, "Let's get that ice-cream." Akane smiled at him as he grabbed her hand and they began to walk.

"He shouldn't have done that," Ranma said through his clenched teeth and gripped Akane's hand a bit tighter.

Akane looked up at him, "There's no excuse for him to behave like that, but he only said it. Not acted on it."

"I ain't lettin' no guy leer at my girlfrie-" he abruptly stopped and blushed furiously.

"At your..." Akane blushed prettily as she turned her head up towards his face, "What?"

Ranma chuckled nervously as he let out an embarrassed sigh, "G-girlfriend?"

Akane smiled as she squeezed Ranma's hand lightly, her eyes downcast as she replied, "I didn't know you thought of me like that, Ranma."

"Well, I do, so," he used his free hand to rub the back of his neck, "Is that alright with you, I mean, with me being your boyfriend?"

"I dunno," Akane pondered as she watched her feet, "I never dated anyone before, I think I'd be a bad girlfriend."

Never dated anyone?

Ranma looked at her with awe and the sudden realization that during the initial peak of her liking of boys must have happened when "it" happened, no wonder she had not. But, here he was, a casanova back in China. Part of him wondered if he was taking advantage of her. But, his mind coined in: he never felt this way with any other girl.

"I think you'd be the best one," Ranma reassured her, "Because," his cheeks began to fluster a brighter red, "You're _you_, Akane."

They made a stoop and Akane looked around confused, "Where are we?" Noting the confusion in her voice, he took that moment to look around and it hit him - he subconsciously walked the way home. "Eh, sorry, looks like I dragged us to my house..."

"Your...house, huh?" Akane peered at the nice building, noting the new construction and lovely floral decorations, "It looks nice, Ranma."

"Want to come in?" He asked nervously, "Uh, I'm sure we got some ice-cream in the house...if you want."

It was silent for a moment and Ranma thought he probably rushed things too fast and she was uncomfortable. He tried to cover it up only to get interrupted with Akane's warm smile, "If you don't mind."

#

Nervously, Ranma kicked his shoes off and led Akane into the empty house. His father would not be back from the lab until 9 and his mother was over at a friends' house for tea; meaning, it was just him and Akane.

"You have such a lovely house," Akane commented as she followed behind him, her eyes scanning the house with interest.

"Thanks," he managed as he got his very male mind out of the gutter. He then proceeded to show her around the house and somehow ended up in his room.

"Cute bedroom," Akane giggled as he rushed to throw some of his laundry under his bed. He chuckled nervously, "Uhh." Akane giggled and it made his heart skip a beat as he reached out to her and held her hand. She took his and she was guided into his chest, into an innocent hug.

Akane hugged back as she let out a sigh of content, and the words fell from her lips, "I think, I've fallen in love with you, Ranma."

Ranma's heart began to race, a silly grin on his goofy face spread cheek to cheek, but stopped in his reverie when he felt her start to cry in his arms. He looked down to see her sob into his shirt, holding onto the fabric of his clothes as she cried.

"But you deserve so much better."

#

Akane did not know what came over her as she broke down in his arms. She thought for sure he would be disgusted with her now and push her away, but he did not. Instead he hugged her closer, resting his head in the crook of her neck, he breathed into her ear, "Don't say that."

She reluctantly pulled away, bringing her hand to wipe the tears, "Ranma, y-you don't know the bullying I went through," she turned her head, "I'm so stupid!" Ranma could only imagine what she went through.

"They called me a whore," she sniffed, "A slut, t-that I was just _begging_ to be raped!" she spilled, "Sure, its calm down, but the fact is, they did. And, a-and I don't want to drag you into this." She slid her small hand down his arms as she looked so lovingly into his eyes, "You don't need to get involved in this, with me."

He narrowed his eyes and forcefully put his hands up to her face, cupping them in his hand and he kissed her. Akane's eyes widened but she felt herself kissing back and was briefly disappointed as he pulled away and kissed her nose as he whispered, "But I want to be, I want to be there for you."

"Because, I love you too and I'll fight this with you."

**Author's Note:**  
>Well, sorry for the wait, but here is the next installment. On my text editor on my phone it says it is 12 pages long. The next chapter will have more of the curse revealed, in more than one way, and p-chan makes an appearance. Hope the length compensates! This story is almost done :)<p> 


	9. Chapter 9: Lovers and Fighters

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love  
>by pahlee<p>

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 9: Lovers and Fighter

"And we wouldn't be here today if it was not for the support of our family and friends," Akane said as she looked outward on the podium, a grin plastered on her small face, "And thanks to them, we've made it to this touchstone in our lives where one chapter closes, and a new one begins."

The crowd was mesmerized by Akane's passion as she stood proudly in her robes, varying colors of tassels hanging around her neck as she gave her valedictorian speech. "And so, today, I present to you the graduating class of XXXX, Furikan High School!"

A loud applause echoed throughout the auditorium as Akane stepped back and took her seat with her other classmates. Ranma smiled warmly at her from his seat three chairs away and Akane blushed as she put her hands on her lap.

They made it to graduation.

Akane became the valedictorian and gave her speech, she won awards and proved herself to be something more than the girl she once was. She sat poised in her seat until Ranma's name was called to receive his diploma. Her eyes followed him and as he stood in front of the crowd, he flashed a cocky grin to the audience and a knowing wink towards his girlfriend. Akane found herself smiling only to be snapped out of it as her name was called.

As she walked, putting one heeled foot in front of the other, she heard the cries of her sisters and the wailing of her father as she shook the hand of her principal and granted the on-lookers a peek at her smile she so rarely shared.

She heard a hoot and followed it back to Ranma; he sat on the edge of his seat with his hands cupped around his mouth as he yelled, mixing with the audience, "Proud of you!"

Akane smiled brightly as she returned to her seat, feeling so elated, words could barely describe how she felt. When the graduation ceremony ended, she was smothered by her family's congratulations, and Ryoga had approached, along with his parents who hugged Akane and greeted her father. Ryoga flashed a toothy grin at his friend, "We did it, Akane, we finished high school."

Taking a deep breath, Akane grinned and took Ryoga's face in her hands and pulled him downwards to give him a friendly kiss on the cheek, as she pulled away she whispered, "Thanks for being there, you don't know how much it really means to me."

Ryoga smiled as she withdrew and she gently put a hand on his shoulder, "Thanks for being a great friend, Ryoga, through it all," her gaze wandered down towards the ground as she stifled her tears, "You stayed."

"Of course," Ryoga said as he looked at the girl he loved, but bit his tongue as he continued, "I value our friendship too much."

And with that, Akane looked back up and smiled at him. And Ryoga did too. Ultimately, that was short lived as Ranma came running up behind Akane and lifting her off her feet as he swung her in the air, joyously laughing, "Way to go, Akachan!" he planted a short, but sweet, kiss on the bridge of her nose. Akane giggled as he put her down and put his arm possessively around her waist and extended an arm out to Ryoga, "Put 'er there, bud, congrats."

Ryoga narrowed his eyes slightly at the gesture but gave in since Akane was in the vincinity. So, he took his hand in a firm grip and shook it, "Congrats to you too, man."

The edge of Ranma's lips curled into a smile as he retracted his arm and put it back around her waist. He planted a light kiss above the spot on top her head, right above her ear, "Hmm, 'Kane, my parents want to meet you."

Akane turned her head slightly to face him, a pink hue evident on her cheeks, "R-really?" Ryoga rolled his eyes at the display, announced his leaving and wandered over to a group of guys loudly hooting. "B-but," Akane stammered, "I look a mess!"

"You look beautiful, quit making excuses and see my mom. She really wants to meet ya." Ranma smiled as he pulled away and took her hand in his, "Come on."

And so, Akane found herself fidgeting as Ranma led her through the sea of people, but the simple squeezing of Ranma's hand in hers kept her sane. He finally led her to a couple standing near the entrance, a bald man and a lady with curly dark auburn hair.

"Oh my goodness!" Nodoka exclaimed as she took in the first sight at the girl her son talked non-stopped about and she threw her arms up and hugged Akane. Ranma had let go of her hand and stood beside her, wearing a cheshire grin.

"Hello my dear, I'm Ranma's mother, Nodoka!" she said into Akane's ears as she pulled away. Ranma's father grunted acknowledgment and a grin, "Genma Saotome, here."

Akane gave a formal bow as she was released from the hold and nervously said, "Pleased to meet you, I'm A-Akane. Tendo Akane."

"Oh, she's so sweet!" Nodoka cried out, tears of joy escaping her eyes as she turned to her husband, "Ranma found such a darling girl!"

Ranma grinned wildly as they seemed to approve of Akane but he was soon pushed out of that when his mother began, "So nice that even with his curse you stay around!"

"Curse?" Akane asked, tilting her head sideways.

Ranma waved his arms wildly, his internal voice screaming as he hushed his mother. Nodoka saw this, gasped and tried to cover up, but her mind went blank. Genma, on the other hand smirked and covered up for his son and wife, "Oh you know, that 'ole Saotome curse, us men in the family line are well blessed, but sometimes it's a curse because of how _heavy _and _big _the burden is."

Nodoka and Ranma gaped at Genma's comment and Ranma blushed furiously. Akane stared oblivious and then she stuttered and her cheeks flushed pink and looked at Ranma and her eyes innocently dropped down and then turned her head away quickly.

"Pop!" groaned Ranma as he buried his hand in his hair, "Oh god, I'm sorry Akane."

"I-it's okay," Akane mustered up before she gained her confidence back up and locked gazes with the equally embarrassed Ranma.

Nodoka watched the exchange between the two and smiled lovingly. She watched as her son took Akane's hand, tangled their fingers together in a hold and smile admiringly into one another's eyes. The only thing that made Nodoka sigh was the fact that Ranma had decided to hide his _real _curse from this lovely girl. Her eyes watched as he placed a light kiss on the edge of her lips and whispered something in her ear to make her smile.

A smile so wonderful she could not blame her son for falling in love with the girl who owned it.

So, for whatever reason he chose to hide his curse, Nodoka hoped it was for the best.

#

"Are you okay back there?" Ranma called over his shoulder as he made past the bend. Akane called back, "Yeah, sorry," she caught up with him with a smile, "I saw the sun setting and I had to stop and take a picture of it." She held up a Polaroid picture and smiled prettily at Ranma.

"Silly," he said shaking his head but brought up his hand to hold her face in his hand, he gazed lovingly into her eyes and mouthed 'I love you so much' and gave her a quick kiss on her forehead.

"Come on, we're almost there," he took her hand and led her a little ways to a clearing. The dropped their bags and Ranma set off to build the fire while Akane pitched the tent and brought out the cooking supplies. As Akane sorted the food, she ran her hand over the ingredients.

She remembered a time when her cooking skills were not as fierce as they were now. She remembered the pain she felt when she went at it and came fighting with tears as she made herself cook, putting all her pain and anger into her cooking. All her free time enabled her to work with it and allowed her to be the decent cook she is now.

#

_"Nyeh!" Ranma said as he stuck his tongue out playfully at Akane as she sat in the mud, the sloppy dirt all over her white sundress and dry clumps clustered in her short hair cutely. "You're mud-pie looks funny!"_

_Akane narrowed her eyes as she scooped up a fresh glop of mud and flung it at Ranma, "Ranma-kun! You are so mean!" Ranma rolled in the mud a bit, all dirty as he flung his arms up in the air, flinging particles everywhere. Akane raised her arms to block the flying debris and watched as Ranma gave her a toothy grin, "]'m only kiddin' ya Akachan," he moved down to move a clod of mud from her hair and he bristled his lips over her forehead, "I'd always eat what you make, doesn't matta' if it looks funny, as long as you made it!" _

_He squat down and began to play eat her pie, his boyish grin spread across his features as the mud flew everywhere, "Yummy, Akachan!"_

#

Akane chuckled as she ran her finger across the knife, remembering that memory. If only Ranma had been there when she first tried to really cook, he would not have believed how far she came along since then and that brought a small smile to her face.

As she did so, she felt a knick from the blade as she cut herself. She let out a soft hiss and Ranma looked up from his ministrations to wander over. "Did you cut yourself?" Akane just nodded her head as she put pressure around the cut, Ranma bent down and retrieved the first aid kit, he slowly cleaned the cut and placed a band-aid on it, "There," he murmured as he stood up and clapped his hands together, "All better."

Akane smiled at him as she retracted her arm and stared down at her finger. Ranma had returned to the fire to get it going before true nightfall came. Akane sat near the fire with the pots ready to be put over it. With one final breath, Ranma created a roaring fire that put the sun to shame for just a brief moment.

Getting up and doing all the necessary preparations, Akane started to make dinner. Ranma laid on his back, by the fire, resting his eyes as he listened to Akane stir the food.

"Whatcha makin'?" Ranma asked simply, without even batting open his eyes.

"Just some stew, we'll eat it with the rice Kasumi packed for us."

#

"This is delicious!" Ranma exclaimed as he ate her food, he glanced over to see her blush and he smiled even bigger, "You are so amazing, Akane!"

"Thanks!" Akane's voice was small, but the tone of joy was predominant.

Ranma gave her a quick wink and returned to his food.

#

Akane sighed as she pulled the blankets around her tight, the cold night wind coming through the open vent of the tent. Ranma was outside putting out the embers of the fire as Akane stared through the opening.

"Done!" Ranma said triumphantly as he put out the last of the embers before crawling into the tent and zipping it up. Akane scooted over towards the edge of the tent where her bedding was set.

"Can you believe we're actually here, after all this time?" Ranma asked, smirking in the dark as he got on his respective side of the tent where his sleeping bad stayed, he blushed (unseen by Akane), "Together."

"Thanks for being patient with me," Akane said in a low voice Ranma almost missed it. He heard her settle in her sleeping bag and turn over on her side. He smiled as he did the same and sighed, "Good night, Akane."

#

The next morning, Ranma woke up to a shadow casting over him through the tent. He squinted his eyes to make out the shadow: Akane. Slowly, he got up from his bedding and made his way outside the tent. Using his hand to shield his eyes from the sun, he squinted about to catch Akane finishing up a kata.

The sweat fell down from her forehead as she glanced over and stopped in her moves to greet Ranma, "Morning Ranma, I made some breakfast," she wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, "It's over there, where we had the fire going last night." Ranma nodded his head as he stretched one arm in the air and made his way to the food.

He plopped down and ate the pre-prepared food. A smile appeared on his lips as Akane walked by and sat beside him, stretching her long legs in front of her and stretched her arms up in the air, "Is it good?" She asked so innocently, but Ranma looked up only to see her chest be pushed forward as she stretched and her chest fell in even breaths as she breathed in and out.

"Y-yeah," he choked out as she finally put down her arms and turned to stare at him with. She put both her arms out in front of her, dangling between her legs as she asked, "Wanna spar?"

Ranma stared at her, watching her cheeks flare up as she asked the question. He could not help but admire her cuteness as he scarfed down the rest of the food, "Yeah."

#

Akane huffed as she tagged Ranma on his chest with her outstretched arm. She breathed heavily as the sweat glistened down her, "Point, and game," she breathed as she retracted. Ranma panted as he wiped the sweat off his face with a white cloth, "You're good..." He grunted, a bit peeved that she managed to tag him in his male form. Ranma knew she was good, but...was she holding back when he was Ranko?

"Thanks!" Akane chirped as she smiled at him, the sun beating down on her face, illuminating her frame. Ranma watched her, and his heart began to race as he watched her catch her breath. And he found himself on her, his arms encircling her waist as he brought his lips on hers.

He pressed his lips ever so slightly, but with a passion that burned through both of them. At first, Akane was reluctant to let him do it, she felt the natural urge to push him off but when she realized that it was Ranma, and that she actually _wanted _it to happen, her body betrayed her mind as she put her arms around his neck as she stood on her toes. A smile played itself on Ranma's lips as he found himself lifting her off the ground and holding her, he found himself bringing her back into the tent and placing her on her back.

He knelt above her as he parted his lips ever so slightly as he eyes fell upon her glazed eyes, her cheeks a healthy flush of red, "Just say it, and I'll stop," he said as he voice got husky and he began to trail a line of kisses down her jaw, "Tell me no, Akachan, and I'll stop."

Akane closed her eyes as Ranma's mouth found a soft spot on the base of her neck, she craned her neck to the side only to whisper, "Don't stop."

He lowered his head to continue his ministrations. And into the early morning to just before noon, Ranma and Akane got to know each other more than just on one level - several times if Ranma had anything to say in this story.

#

Akane pulled the Chinese shirt around her shoulders as Ranma hanged their clothes out to dry. As she stood, the hem of the shirt went past her thighs and her long milk white legs poked out. She tucked her now wet hair behind her ears as she walked out the tent. The sun was now in its highest point as Akane put up her hand to shield the rays from her eyes. "Are you alright?" Ranma called over his shoulder as he put up her shirt and then turned around to face her.

A very manly smirk made its way on his face as he looked at Akane clad in his shirt. Akane blushed as she pulled on the shirt to cling to her body, "I-I'm fine."

He smiled at her as he walked over and hugged her in his arms, just to simply hold her. Now that he had her, he never wanted her out of his life. He never wanted to leave her again.

Just then, he heard a small murmur. He pulled away and looked down at her, he saw her eyes: the hope behind them and everything riding on his answer as she asked, "Do you regret it?"

"No," he hissed as he gripped her shoulders and pulled her closer to him and he whispered in her ear as he felt her tremble beneath his finger tips, "And don't you ever think otherwise, I love you Akane Tendo."

#

A week later, the two returned from their camping trip. They got off the train, hand-in-hand into the open arms of their parents.

"Ahh, welcome home my baby!" Soun cried out as he hugged his youngest daughter in a big embrace, the tears of joy springing from his eyes, "We missed you!"

Kasumi stood alongside him, patting Akane's shoulder as she gave a sweet smile, welcoming her back. Nabiki stood a ways back, a scowl on her face as she watched Ranma be greeted by his parents. "He treat you okay?" she asked as Soun pulled away. Akane blushed at the other implications she thought, but brushed it away as she answered, "Y-yeah, he did, Nabiki."

#

"Akane?" Ranma asked as he turned his head over on the bed to look at Akane bending over his desk, writing something. Akane acknowledged him with a nod, "Do you want to go on a walk?"

Looking up, Akane peered at Ranma who was sprawled on his bed, "Sure, let me sign this and we can go." And so, the two left the house and walked side by side towards the park. Ranma kept glancing over at Akane, nervously patting his pocket ever so often.

As they walked, Akane took in the sights around them. Her eyes bouncing from one object to another until a small black blur passed her. She paused in her tracks to see it pass by again. "What in the worl-" she started to say only to be cut short as she reached out to grab the moving object only to have a squealing piglet in her hands.

"Oh my gosh, aren't you just the cutest thing ever?" Akane exclaimed as she shot up and pressed the piglet into Ranma's face, "Look Ranma, it's a cute little piglet!" Ranma narrowed his eyes as he looked at the piglet, the piglet glared and began to frantically toss its arms and legs at his face, scratching him up.

"Hey!" Ranma exclaimed as he put his hands up to stop the pug, Akane pulled him away, "Oh god! Are you okay?" She coddled the pig in her arm as she reached out to check on Ranma. Ranma rubbed his face as he looked at the piglet glare at him, something familiar about it itched Ranma's mind. That yellow bandana loo- dammit!

Ranma glared, it was Ryoga.

Akane watched Ranma as he stared hard at the little piggy she had in her hands, she looked down to see it nudging against her. She slowly knelt down to put the piggy down and it cocked its head at them. Ranma and Akane looked at each other and followed the pig. The piggy led them to a hot tea vendor where it pointed with its snout to the hot water.

Ranma glared as Akane looked confused, "Does it want tea?"

"I think he wants the hot water," Ranma grumbled as he went over and asked for the water and returned. He picked up the pig with the same hand and took Akane's wrist as he led them away. He put the hot water on the ground and the piggy ran into it, spilling the contents on it.

Akane raised an eyebrow at the spectacle only to scream and cling onto Ranma as a naked Ryoga emerged. Akane buried her head into Ranma's chest as he held her there.

"Put some damn clothes on, ya idiot!" Ranma yelled.

After a few minutes, a fully clothed Ryoga came back and stood before Ranma and Akane. Akane held onto Ranma's arm as she leered at him, her mouth agape, "Ryoga, you were- and then you- you had..." she stuttered as she looked. Ryoga rubbed the back of his neck, "Remember that day, long ago? When I asked you about magic?"

Akane racked her brain, "Yeah, you weren't lying?" She looked at him incredulously as she turned her head to Ranma, "T-that's crazy!"

"Jusenkyo," Ryoga simply said.

"But that's a fairy tale! Nothing but mirth and myth for children's ears at night!" Akane whispered.

"I tried to tell you," Ryoga said, "But I thought to stop that day when you rejected me. No worries about it," he threw his arm up, "My father's research group found a cure."

"Cure?" Ranma jerked his head towards Ryoga, staring him down, "They found one?"

Ryoga smirked, "Yeah, no more piggy for me after they send in their research." Akane smiled at him, "That's good news then, but...I just don't believe it."

"It's the truth, cold water triggers my transformation and hot water changes me back," Ryoga said, "And once I'm cured, I'm going to go to Okinawa."

"Ryoga," Akane said as she unlatched from Ranma and put her hands on his shoulders and looked sweetly in his eyes, "Good luck, but thanks for being truthful even though I didn't believe you."

"It's alright," Ryoga said as he ran his hand through his hair, "Thought I let you know." Akane smiled sweetly at him as he blushed and then he shot a glare at Ranma, "Know this though, I'll never lie you."

Akane smiled meekly, "Thanks."

#

"Wasn't that insane?" Akane said as they came to the park and sat on a bench. Akane leaned on the edge of the seat and locked her ankles behind one another as she folded her hands over in her lap, her eyes shined as she turned to Ranma, "Can you believe Ryoga, Ranma?"

Ranma shifted uncomfortably as he looked at the girl beside him. Her innocence shined through and it ate at him - he felt like the worse person in the world at that moment. He chuckled nervously, "Y-yeah, how about that?"

Akane scooted back and threw her head back to see the giant tree she and Ranma used to play on, "It's so weird, that in this time and place that something like that exists."

Ranma did not say anything as he patted his pocketed, rethinking where he was going to go with what he had. Akane sat straight up and turned to Ranma, "Why'd you want to go on a walk, Ranma?"

"Uh," Ranma started but quickly lost his wits as he stared at the girl beside him, with her brown eyes shining at him, showing her love for him and her _trust_ that he was ultimately breaking and it gnawed at him. Overhead, the clouds began to darken and converge above him, but Ranma did not notice as he leaned forward and captured Akane's lips with his own. He muttered between kisses, "You promised you won't hate me."

A crack of lightening flashed across the sky and a loud rumble of thunder followed and a heavy downpour rained on the unexpected couple. Akane, still on a daze from the kiss, broke away from Ranma, blinked and did a double-take. Before her sat Ranko, drenched in Ranma's clothes with her eyes tightly closed shut. "Akane..." Ranko whispered.

Akane's eyes widened as she processed the situation handed to her. Hurriedly, she left the bench and stood before Ranko, her arms hung loosely at her side as the rain began to pour wildly. Tears began to block her vision, as she tried to blink away the fading image she just witnessed. Her hands trembled as she stared at the red head still sitting on the bench, with those blue eyes.

Those blue eyes that looked her in the eyes that one night who said would not lie to her. Those blue eyes that whispered sweet nothings that night in the tent the day she gave herself to him. Those blue eyes that told her that he loved her.

Those blue eyes that belonged to Ranma now stared at her from the form of a friend that she was under the impression had moved and had her trust she gave so willingly.

"Ranko!" Akane exclaimed as Ranma quickly stood up to catch her before she fell to the ground. Ranma ran his now smaller hand across her forehead, wiping her fringe out the way as he hoisted her up and brought her home.

#

Akane sat up, a rag falling off her forehead as she looked frantically around. She noted that she was in a bed, Ranma's bed, making this... Ranma's room. In a frenzy, she tried to get up but the sudden shift caused her to fall back. Ranma reached out and stabilized her, "You gotta rest, you fainted."

"I fainted?" Akane asked as she was gently pushed down back on the bed. Turning her head slightly, she saw Ranma sit on a chair beside his bed. Their eyes locked and Ranma tried to turn away but Akane was quick. She reached out and grabbed his face, forcing his gaze to hers. His bold blue eyes were ensnared by her determined golden brown ones filled with anticipation as she literally bore deep into his eyes.

"Ranma?" His name slipped from her lips as she watched him. Ranma raised his hands up to cup hers in his and moved them off his face. Their gazes never interrupted, he reached for the cup of water that sat on his bedside table and tipped it over him.

Akane watched him transform from his masculine form into a smaller, more petite frame with vibrant red hair. Akane's eyes widened as Ranko reached out to her, "I'm sorry."

In a worried state, Akane looked around and saw a cup of water with steam rising from it; she clasped it and threw it on Ranma, watching him return to his normal facade.

"Y-you're Ranko?" Akane said in such a low tone, "You're Ranko and never told me?" Her voice began to rise as she stared at him; Ranma reached forward and held her in an embrace to calm her down. But it did not stop her arms from flying up and beating him with one hand then the next as she cried into his shirt, "You never told me! You're Ranko?"

She repeated herself as she came to a halt and pushed Ranma off her, the tears still falling, "How long, Ranma, how long..." She said as she got out of his bed and towered over his sitting form, her lips trembled as she clutched the front of her shirt, "Were you going to keep that up? I-is this a joke to you?"

Ranma stood up, causing the chair to topple off, "No! Listen, I never meant for that to happen."

"But you let it happen!" Akane found herself yelling. She fumbled with her hands as she tried to wipe her tears away, "Why'd you lie to me Ranma!" She began to make a break for it, but Ranma was determined to talk to her. He went for her wrist and held her as she cried.

"Let me go Ranma!" Akane sobbed, "I just want to go home!"

"Akane..." He tried but she snapped, "Don't call me by my name!" She tugged her arm free as she continued, "I want to go home now, _Saotome_!"

Ranma's heart clenched as he watched her leave through the door. Her painstaking face turned to him once more, so much pain behind those innocent eyes, "I don't want to see you for a while...please don't make this any harder than it already is."

#

"That motherfu-" Nabiki growled as she balled her fist, looking ready to strike as Akane concluded her story. Kasumi chastised her sister, "Nabiki, your language!"

"I'm sorry Kasumi, but that Saotome boy, ohhh when I get my hands around his neck!" Nabiki continued. Akane sighed as her sisters got into an argument as she stared down at the floor. She turned her hands over on her lap, a trait she did when she contemplated, and just thought about Ranma.

How he seemed so eager to ask her some earlier in the day, only to be told later that she did not want to see him. But, he had hurt her so bad, the moment she connected the pieces she felt so foolish, so stupid, so...broken. It rivaled the night the man had taken her innocence away; only worse.

She felt betrayed.

She felt the tears crept up again and she muttered, "But I can't bring myself to hate him..."

#

"Goddammit!" Ranma yelled as he kicked the punching bag that hung outside in his backyard. It gave in and fell into a crumpled heap onto the ground. Ranma cursed under his breath as he walked over to clean up the mess. He muttered as he gathered the debris and turned to dispose of it. As he did so, he came face-to-face with his mother.

"Are you alright?" she asked, her voice laced with worry, her eyes went straight to the broken punching bag in his hands, "Is there something on your mind?"

Not knowing what to do, he lashed out his mother in an anger, "Aside from the fact that Akane basically broke up with me because she had every right to do so, and I'm left here with a goddamn broken heart and left to think that I can't do shit about it, ma?"

His eyebrow twitched as he realized his tone and who he was talking to and before he got the chance to apologize, his mother spoke up in a soft voice, "Sweetheart, whatever it is, I am sure Akane will forgive you."

Ranma looked at his mom, stupor in his gaze as he dropped his shoulders and sighed sadly, "I don't think she'll forgive me for this..."

#

Akane tapped the end of her pencil on the clipboard as she read the name she dreaded to see the past two months. She looked at the queue again to make sure she did not misread and groaned. It was him.

"Saotome, Ranma, the doctor will see you now," she called out in her sweet voice, filled with trepidation.

At the sound of her voice, Ranma's head jerked up and looked at the girl dressed in a white dress and wore a matching white hat, holding a clipboard. His heart began to race as he nervously got up and approached her. Akane refused to meet his eyes as she led him down a hall. She looked over his papers as he slowly padded behind her. He was there for a routine check-up.

"Akane." He found himself talking as he watched her walk, "Can we talk?"

"There's nothing to talk about, Saotome." she replied.

At the use of his surname, Ranma flinched. He shoved his hands into his pockets as he gritted his teeth. Akane opened a door to a room where Ranma entered and pulled her in with him. He shut it with a click of the lock.

"What do you think you're doing!" Akane hissed as she tried to go around him and escape, but Ranma pulled her away and blocked the door.

"You never returned my calls." He said.

"I didn't see a need to!" Akane replied hotly, "Now let me out! I have rounds to do!"

"We got to talk."

"No, I have nothing to say to you."

"But **_I _**do," Ranma said now with agitation in his voice.

Akane bit her lower lip as she forced the tears back, she managed a good look at Ranma who seemed determined to say what he was going to say, regardless what she had to say.

"Saotome..." she whispered as she felt his hands grip her shoulders as he pulled her against him as he buried his face in the crook in her neck. His breath, hot against her ear, "I hate it when you call me that..." he leaned closer, "I want you to say my name, without conviction, without..." Akane felt him tense up and she found herself crying as she gripped him, "I don't hate you..."

She felt him ease up, but the tears came streaming down as she pushed him off her and she managed to go around him, "But I don't trust you."

#

Akane took her shoes off as she entered her apartment. She glanced over to the door where a table sat with an answering machine sitting on top of it. It blinked red.

She walked over as she took off her hat and pressed the button.

_You have (2) unheard messages. Message playback._

"G-good evening, Akane-san! It's Ryoga, I..uh, just wanted to make sure you're okay. Happy early birthday, by the way, I won't be able to wish you a greeting on Saturday because Akari wants me at the farm. By the way, she sends her greetings too. Okay, got to go, have a good day, Akane-san."

_Message received today at 3:17 PM._

"Heeey little sister, its Nabs, Saotome keeps calling the house line looking for you. Did something happen today? It's more than his usual every three day check-up. Kasumi's being a good sport about it, but I'm not... Anyways, thought I call and let you know. Call your family once a while little squirt, we're worried about you. Study hard, work hard, and keep your doors locked, take care, sis."

_Message received today at 7:08 PM._

_End of messages._

Glancing at the wall clock, she noted that she had barely missed that call. She sighed as she proceeded to strip out of her uniform and walk into her room where she changed into a shirt and shorts. She rubbed her temples as she gathered her books and brought it out to the living room. She spread it across the table and cracked open a book, she soon found herself engulfed in her homework.

Her fingers gripped the pencil loosely when the phone began to ring. She looked up from her work to glance at the clock, it was a weird time for her to be receiving any calls this late. Slowly, she got up and answered the phone.

"Tendo residence, Akane speaking." Akane answered.

"Akane, please," the familiar voice began and Akane instantly recognized it and cut him off by saying, "No! How'd you get this number, Saotome?"

"Please, Akane, let me explain," Ranma said on the other line, his voice pleading, "It's been two months...I miss you."

Akane's eyes began to water up as she clenched the receiver, her lower lip trembled as she felt the tears begin to fall. "Stop it," she whispered, "Stop it, Saotome...q-quit bothering me."

Because she missed him too.

"I couldn't restrain myself anymore, I thought giving you space would help clear up this...situation. But, you ignored me, never called me back - Akane, I'm not giving up."

The tears made their way down her face as she sobbed silently, dropping to her knees. She listened to Ranma on the other end, "I know you're crying, and it's because of me...and I'm so sorry I lied to you. I knew it was wrong, I knew it would hurt you if you found out without me telling you, but I did it anyways."

Slowly, the tears began to slow as she listened to Ranma, his tone began to pick up as somber, yet serious voice and she could hear the pain in it as he continued, "You had a friend in Ranko I couldn't offer myself, your fear of men ensured I held a different spot in your heart. The way you would smile at me... I didn't want to take that away. Because, before we got together, before you realized who I was...I was just another male in your life you elevated on the same plane as the others. And well, 'kane..." he sighed, "I just knew I couldn't offer a friendship that you had so gladly given Ranko after I found out what happened to you."

"But I tried so hard to make you smile the way you did when you had a friend in Ranko," he continued, "And the only time I think I achieved that was when I told you I love you, and you believed in me. And Akane," he paused as if to test if Akane was still on the line, he could hear her soft breathing and he steeled himself, "I still love you."

**Author's Note**  
>My editor on my phone says this is 16 pages long! :) Well, here you guys go! I have been working on and off on this chapter for a good long while, and surprise, surprise: this story has one more chapter to go before it is complete. When I first began this story, I never intended for it to get past six chapters, but I just kept writing. But, this story is coming up for a wrap. :) and my other story I have been writing on paper may be released...depends! :)<p>

3/26/2012:: I revised the story, deleted repeated words, fixed grammar (the ones I could catch anyways), spelling and punctuation. I fixed a typo error near the end, the "he" to "you". I'll be going through all the chapters eventually to fix the story, so watch out for that. 'kk? Now, I have to go, I have an online assignment due at midnight!


	10. Chapter 10: Hope

**Disclaimer: **Ranma 1/2 belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

Trust, Hope & Love

by pahlee

_This story takes place in an alternative universe._

Story 10: Hope

Akane bit her lower lip as silence followed his statement. "And honestly," she heard him go on, "I will always love you. I know you don't trust me anymore..." Akane listened as he took a deep breath, "And it hurts to know I brought that upon myself, but it hurts even more to not be able to see you, hear you talk...even to just hold you."

"Akane, please, can I see you?"

#

Her fingers played with the hem of her shirt as she stood nervously outside the clinic. The sun bore down on her as she shielded her eyes with her hand as she looked up at the bright sky. A soft sigh escaped her lips and a pair of arms scared her out of her revere as they engulfed her in an embrace. Her eyes got wide as she began to go into a defensive mode, but she recognized them and she gently pushed him away.

"Saotome," she breathed as she turned to look at Ranma staring at her, his arms still holding the air where she just was, his face in a frown.

"Akane..." He muttered as he put his arms down.

"We're here only to talk," Akane stated.

"I can't hug you?" Ranma questioned, "I don't think we ever broke up, I think I can hug my girlfriend whenever I want 'ta."

"I rather not," Akane replied honestly, "I-I don't even know why I came..." she the began to turn around and tried to walk away, but she found that impossible as two arms came to embrace her and make her stay.

She felt safe, protected and most of all: _loved, _in his arms.

And that brought forth the tears she could not hold back. His face came near hers, his lips brushing against her ear as he whispered in a tone only for her, "You came here for the same reason I did."

"No," it fell from her trembling lips.

"Akane, please," she heard the pain in his voice, "I love you."

Hearing him say it in that tone, seeing him like that made her burst over the edge as she turned around in his hold and threw her arms around his neck, crying into the crook of his neck, soaking his shirt.

"Dammit it, Ranma, I-I hate the way I can't think straight around you! I-I let my w-walls down, let you in, let my inhibitions loose and gave myself to you..." she sobbed, "I trusted you, I let you into my life only to make me feel this way. I've forgiven you countless times for the Ranko ordeal...but, b-but," she began to stutter.

Ranma had started to rub the back of the hysterical girl in his arms, a soft look in his eyes as he listened to her pour her heart out.

"Oh god, Ranma, I-I just thought that m-maybe, just maybe if you thought I didn't care anymore you'd find someone better. Leave me. You don't want a bitch like me, pushing you away for something so trivial as that..."

"Stop it, you're not a bitch."

"I am...and I hurt you, but I just panicked, Ranma, I -I didn't know what to do...so I pushed you away -"

But Akane never finished her sentence as Ranma's lips crashed down on hers, successfully silencing her. As he pulled away, he looked down at the flushed girls' face, tears trickling down her cheek, "You talk too much."

He smiled as he cupped her face, "I understand, and don't put all the blame on yourself, it was my fault. I didn't think it through all the way...but I never intended to mislead you like I had, lie the way I did, I never...I never thought that you'd be in love with me."

He let go of her face and brought her into a soft hug, "I never want to hurt you again..."

She brought her hand up to place her fingers on his lips, her eyes shining as she whispered, "I trust you."

"And, Ranma? I love you."

#

"And so I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Ranma Saotome!" the preacher said as he raised his arms in celebration. The church filled with applause and tears of joy as the happily married couple smiled out at their audience.

Through the hardships they had to overcome, through the pain the two suffered and all the joy they had: they were finally joined. Despite the past and their separation, they were together now and lived only for their future.

#

_Akane giggled as Ranma walked in wearing his father's "fancy" shoes and a wildflower pinned to his father's collared shirt. Ranma glared at his friend, "It's not funny Akachan, they're too big for me."_

_Slowly, Akane walked over and attempted to fix the collar of his shirt as she buttoned it up, "Ne, Ranma-kun, one day you'll grow up a strong man, and it'll fit. It'll all into place." He toom her wrist in his hand, "I'll grow up to be a man for you, Akachan."_

_"Cool, I'll be waiting, don't keep me waiting long!" Akane giggled as she kissed his cheek._

_"Ok!" Ranma grinned wildly as he then proceeded to pretend to marry his friend and go running around in the fields. _

#

As they walked down the aisle, Ranma whispered in her ear, "I won't let anything hurt you."

"And neither will I."

END

**Author's Note**

Here we go! The final installment of the story, sure there are some unanswered ends but I believe this story ends nicely here. One day, I will go back and revise all the chapters for grammar and spelling, but as for content: this saga is complete. Thanks for hanging on with me! :)


End file.
